


Last Night

by CQueen



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Teachers, Cat Owners, Drunk Sex, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-07-27 12:40:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 64,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7618453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CQueen/pseuds/CQueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An impromptu party for the teaching faculty of Hogwarts takes a very unexpected turn for two of its teachers when both men drink way too much and let their egos get the better of them later on. How Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy will handle things the day after...now that will be almost as interesting as what happened that night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Don't Drink and Argue

Disclaimer: As always I own nothing but the original characters and the situations all characters end up in. Everything else belongs to someone else and that's the way of it.

Don't Drink and Argue

Thanks to the liquor everyone was consuming in great quantities the atmosphere in the room had improved greatly. The group of teachers, many of them old enough to know better, were all drunk or so close it was rather hard to tell that they weren't just as pissed as the majority of the faculty. No one would argue that they didn't have cause to celebrate though, since anyone who'd ever had the misfortune to meet, much less teach Philip Dingleberry would completely understand celebrating the fact that the idiot wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts to repeat his third year for the fourth time. The boy had apparently decided to break the rules and attempt to practice his potion making the week before school started once more and things had gone wrong. Horribly wrong. The boy was now a resident of St. Mungos for the foreseeable future and that meant none of them had to deal with the boy or the kid's delusional parents who believed their son was a victim of bad teaching and not as dumb as a troll.

Said parents were determined that the kid graduate from Hogwarts as all his ancestors had done, so as soon as the boy was returned to something resembling a human being he'd be back, unfortunately, but until then they were all celebrating.

After all, school started in two days and this was the best news many of the teachers had gotten since the end of the war.

The two youngest teachers of the bunch were also one of the big reasons everyone had been quick to dive into the liquor they'd acquired for said celebration. Normally, while at Hogwarts, Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy stayed the hell out of each other's way and were civil enough when that wasn't an option. It had served the two well during their years at school together and both had been teaching at the school for the past two years without any major incidents on their records.

Or that's how it was up until it was discovered that they were dating the same guy over the summer.

Not being idiots they'd quickly realized that they'd both been completely in the dark about the other, which was what had prevented them from taking pages out of their fathers' books where the other was concerned. But it had definitely put a strain on their already barely cordial relationship, especially since neither man was the type to talk things out in order to assert their thoughts and feelings on the matter. As it was they'd both left their cheating boyfriend in his apartment and got the hell out of there without even letting their ex explain or even give them some hint as to who had been the other man.

For his part Albus considered the whole debacle as the final nail in the coffin so to speak. He was ready to accept, once and for all, that he was just too much like his Uncle Charlie and was doomed to be a bachelor for the rest of his life. Though doomed probably wasn't the right word seeing as there were good things about being a bachelor, particularly when you were gay. It wasn't like he could have children biologically after all, and he could always adopt when he was old enough to handle single parenting.

And worse came to worse he always had his animals.

It was hard to find the idea appealing at the moment though, as he was sitting beside another confirmed bachelor who, he'd always thought, regretted never having married or had kids. But then Hagrid's life had never been an easy one period, which just made it that much sadder and wrong.

And thinking that had the younger man throwing an arm around his friend's waist since he couldn't reach Hagrid's shoulder, joining him in his drinking song.

)

Later That Night

As their suites were across from each other Albus and Scorpius had no choice but to walk back together unless they wanted to look so childish that they couldn't even handle each other's company for the short, less than ten minute walk. They'd been kicked out of the teacher's lounge along with everyone else after all, and they were the only ones living in this hallway currently. Thankfully they were drunk enough that they weren't even really thinking about why they were at odds for the moment, minds focused on how good it was going to feel to get into their beds and under their covers.

When they arrived at their destination good manners had Albus turning to wish the other man good night, Scorpius so surprised by the gesture that he spun back around with the intention of acknowledging the comment, his head spinning as a result so that he stumbled towards him instead.

Instinct again kicking in the Gryffindor moved in to wrap his arms around the Slytherin in support, aware enough to know that he could handle hard liquor better than the blonde in his grasp could. He was bigger, for one thing, and for another when he had alcohol it wasn't the fancy wines and cocktails Mr. Pureblood was likely used to, Albus thought with a smirk.

"Potter…why are you holding me?"

"It seemed like the thing to do at the time?"

"Moron." Though the man was incredibly warm, Scorpius thought as he fought the urge to move closer. Potter wasn't THAT much bulkier than he was, but those muscles he could feel through his clothes were rather nice too. Too bad they belonged to Albus Potter. "Was this why he screwed around on me with you? Because of your muscles?"

Scorpius wasn't even aware he'd spoken that outloud until Albus informed him that it didn't matter why the little shit had two timed them, just that he had.

"Your muscles aren't even that big."

Drunk enough to care, Albus drew back and then deliberately lifted up the hem of his shirt to show off the fact that there was nothing but toned flesh there, even if he didn't have the serious definition his older brother sported. "You're just jealous because you've got the same body you had when we were students together and I've got this."

Flushing with insult Scorpius glared at the man, his voice laced with venom. "I do not. And don't talk to me about looks, Mr. Perpetual Bedhead."

"Sorry for having better things to do than spend hours on my personal grooming."

"I do not spend hours on my grooming!"

"Oh please. If I threw you head first onto the ground you'd probably be able to slide across the floor like a greased watermelon."

"Bastard!" Pulling back his fist Scorpius aimed for the Gryffindor's smug face, cursing when the other man fingers curved around his, halting it before it could make contact.

Moving entirely on instinct Albus turned and backed Scorpius up against the wall, keeping a tight grip on both the man's wrists to be safe while he used the rest of his body to pin the undeniably dangerous Slytherin against the cool stone. And since he didn't appreciate being insulted, or having fists thrown in his direction, Albus's resort was as nasty as his mood was becoming as he suggested that the reason why their mutual ex had hooked up with him in the first place was because Scorpius's tongue was nothing short of venomous and who would want that in their mouth?

"Are you suggesting that I don't know how to snog? How dare you-I'll show you who's the better kisser, Potter. Prepare to be ruined for life."

Determined to prove his point and defend his honor Scorpius moved in and went about snogging the Gryffindor to the best of his ability, deliberately bringing his tongue into play since that had been insulted too. And if he quickly forgot exactly why he was doing this, other than the man tasted amazing, well he remembered eventually.

Breaking off the kiss, Scorpius stuck out his chin and tried not to think about how sorry he was to end the contact. "So there. See, best is me. I mean I'm the best." The snogging had gone to his bloody head as much as the booze.

"We'll see about that."

This time they were both equal participants in the snogging, Albus letting Scorpius's arms go so that he could cup the Slytherin's ass in his hands. It was a really nice ass, the Gryffindor noted, wondering how he'd missed that all these years.

How they went from making out in the hallway to the inside of Albus's rooms was something they'd never know, the sexual and alcohol daze they were in making that part pretty much a blur in both their minds. All they knew for sure was that somehow they got into the room and ended up taking turns slamming the other against one of the two walls in determined shows of domination that didn't last long before the other managed to gain the upper hand through strength or cunning. Both were dominant males after all, and neither was used to being submissive or willing to behave that way. This was just another competition between them, another way of proving that they would never bend to the will of the other.

Eventually the walls ended as they stumbled into the parlor, both cursing and clutching the other for support as they struggled to stay on their feet.

"Still need me to hold you up for support, Malfoy?" Albus managed to pant out after breaking off their latest kiss with a loud, sexy as hell pop, struggling to get some air to the brain cells the Slytherin had fried. "Do you have any muscles at all?"

And to find out for himself Albus reached out and yanked the man's jumper up and over the blonde's head, tossing it aside before turning his attention to running his hands over the now bare torso. Not bad at all, he informed Scorpius, though pretty girlie.

Since he couldn't argue that his stomach wasn't as muscled as the Gryffindor's Scorpius's lips curved into a scowl. "That's not what's important." Reaching between them he made quick work of Albus's belt and then trousers, forcefully parting the material so that he could wrap his fingers around the man's erection, squeezing hard for emphasis while Albus cursed him. "This is what matters." And damn, the man was hung.

He hadn't thought that through.

Voice significantly huskier thanks to Scorpius continued grip, Albus showed that he was indeed thinking a little straighter, though no less perverted. "So you want to measure them, then? I'm game."

In short order Albus had the blonde's trousers out of his way and Scorpius in hand so to speak, the Gryffindor taking it a couple steps further by deliberately moving his fisted hand up and down the other man's length since, as he pointed out, they couldn't measure accurately until they were both fully erect.

Refusing to back down even though alarms were going off in the back of his mind, Scorpius accepted the unspoken challenge, both men failing miserably to hide the fact that they fucking loved being jerked off by the other and were getting perilously close to orgasming as the minutes ticked by.

And continued to tick by as they forgot why they were doing this in the first place and instead turned their alcohol soaked minds to controlling their bodies just long enough that they weren't the first to come.

It was Scorpius who gave in first, letting go of Albus so that he could wrap his arms around the Gryffindor's neck as he hung on for dear life, his knees no longer up to holding his weight as he buried his face against the man's throat and shamelessly begged for more.

If he'd been sober Albus would have rubbed that fact in Scorpius's face, but as it was the blonde's reactions to what he was doing was driving him crazy enough that all he cared about was giving Scorpius exactly what the man wanted so that he could get what he wanted, which would require the Slytherin to be in too good a mood to deny him.

He wanted more than a hand job now that he'd gotten a glimpse of just how sexy the man could be and he wanted to see more.

Breathing in Albus's scent like it was a drug, why had he never noticed just how fucking good the man smelled, Scorpius's musing on the topic died under an avalanche of pleasure as his climax swept through him, catching him completely by surprise as he'd never imagined that it could be this good with Albus Potter of all people. Man had he misjudged him.

Meanwhile Albus waited until the other man had mostly recovered from his orgasm before he started herding Scorpius towards the bedroom and the bed he intended to shag the man's brains out on.

He hadn't come yet after all, and he'd much rather do that while inside the Slytherin's notoriously tight ass.

Oh baby.

)

His feet made no sound on the stone flooring as Yue headed towards him school term home. It was later then he would have liked but Mrs. Norris the Third and Mr. Norris had delaying him. Albus would probably already be fast asleep, Yue thought to himself, which suited him just fine since that meant that the bed would be nice and warm for him when he got there. He hated a cold bed almost as much as he hated baths, and that was saying something.

That his companion loved the latter was a quirk he chose to put up with since Albus had few flaws in general.

Arriving at his hallway Yue had almost reached his door when a smell caught his attention, his eyes narrowing as he padded over to stand in front of Malfoy's door. Yes, the scent was definitely coming from in there and there was only one conclusion his intelligent mind could come up with.

The potions teacher had gotten himself a pet over the summer.

It wasn't a pureblood like himself, probably a half or a quarter if his superior nose was correct.

He was tempted to scratch at the door, see if the other animal was still awake and interested in getting acquainted, but it was late, and if Albus was awake he would worry about him if he didn't get back to their room shortly. They had a whole school year to get to know each other, though if the creature was anything like his master Yue couldn't see himself wanting to make friends with it.

Tomorrow he'd see about introducing himself, Yue decided before heading across the hallway to his own door, walking through what looked like solid wood but was really just an illusion set up to look that way.

Heading for the bedroom Yue frowned when he saw the clothing scattered in that direction, sniffing his disapproval. He didn't like their living space to be messy and he and Albus were going to-that shirt wasn't Albus, it smelled like Malfoy. Malfoy and liquor.

Trepidation settling in his gut Yue ran the rest of the way to the bedroom, using the steps that led up to the large, four poster bed to get to his master who was passed out on his stomach as usual. And climbing up and onto that warm, bare back, Yue stared down at the other man who was lying beside Albus.

Uh oh….not good, not good at all.

Sparing Albus a brief glance Yue scowled and shook his head, unable to believe that the man had been dumb enough to get drunk and get naked with Malfoy, who would no doubt cough up a metaphorical hair ball tomorrow when he woke up and realized what would happen.

That being the case he better find the man's wand and hide it, just to be safe.

)

Waking up with his face already scrunched up in pain, Scorpius allowed himself one low whimper for his stupidity in letting himself be drawn into a drinking competition with Potter. Not that it had been official or anything, but it had felt like one and he'd been compelled, like an idiot, to try and keep up with the man throughout the evening. Even half drunk he'd known how stupid that was, the man was bigger and probably went out drinking crappy booze like that all the time. Probably had an immunity to the stuff and was no doubt in his bed now without a hangover just waiting to split his skull in two, the Slytherin mused bitterly. His own headache would increase by ten folds as soon as he opened his eyes, he just knew it, but he wasn't the type to lie around in bed or shy away from facing the consequences of his actions.

So he forced his eyes to open part way, staying that way until a sound that was a cross between a rumble and a purr had him turning his head with eyes open to take in the sight beside him.

Holy-Why the hell was Albus Potter in his bed?

Why was Albus Potter BUTT FUCKING NAKED in his BED?

And…this wasn't his bed.

Scooting backwards automatically, his only thought to get as far away from the other man as possible, Scorpius barely got out a yelp of shock right before he tumbled off of the bed, landing hard on his knees.

Cursing over that fact Scorpius rose to his feet, wanting to face the Gryffindor properly if his fall had woken the other man up.

And it was when he was standing straight and tall, feeling relieved when he noted that Potter was still asleep, that he became aware of the fact that his knees weren't the only part of his body that was throbbing. The knees were the big thing, his arse only a little tender, but it was the oddity of it that had him questioning why it should feel out of sorts in the first place.

That was when some very graphic and disturbing images began running through his mind, the last few requiring him to sit on the side of the bed as his legs gave out from under him.

Not only had he lost his bleeding mind and shagged Albus Potter…but he'd been on the bottom. He'd let the son of a bitch fuck his blooming ass.

It was official, he'd brought his family to a new low.

And here he hadn't thought that possible.


	2. Don't Mess With Kneazles

Don't Mess With Kneazles

Trying and failing to wrap his mind around how this could happen, how he could so completely lose his mind and fuck up this badly, Scorpius swiped his hand through his already messy hair as he tried to ignore the pounding in his head. Not an easy thing to do, but the shocks his system was taking numbed at least some of the pain as memories continued to float to the surface, showing him bits and pieces of what had happened the night before. It was a puzzle with a number of missing pieces, but he had enough to get the picture all too clearly.

Sensing eyes on him, and not Potter's, Scorpius turned his head and met a golden brown stare that promised untold pain if he tried anything the creature didn't approve of.

"And just where the fuck were you last night? You could have stopped us!"

The kneazle gave him a dirty look while remaining tense and at the ready, no doubt prepared to pounce and dig its fangs and claws into him if it thought he posed a threat to it or its owner. And that wasn't false bravado on the creature's part, Scorpius mentally acknowledged, they were damn aggressive and possessive things, hence the necessity of a license to own one.

Potter took this one with him everywhere so it was trained, but the Slytherin didn't doubt the animal still had all its claws. He couldn't recall its name, but he vaguely remembered that it was somehow related to the fact that the feline's fur resembled a night sky in that it was mostly pure black with small white splotches on its rump that sorta resembled a quarter moon and stars. The female students thought it utterly adorable, but the creature had never been anything but coolly dismissive towards him.

Studying the animal reminded him that he also had a pet back in his own room to deal with, unfortunately. His grandmother had decided he needed companionship and that giving him an animal to take care of and love was just the thing. His was a little over half kneazle according to its papers and not at all aggressive thus far. It had gotten its brains from its more magical side though, so at least it was intelligent enough to stay out of his way most of the time.

He still hadn't figured out how to get rid of it without his grandmother finding out and skinning him over it.

Pushing that thought aside, it wasn't like he didn't have more immediate problems, Scorpius turned his attention back to the son of a bitch who'd shagged his fucking ass the night before. Still fast asleep of course, and completely defenseless save for the feline guarding him. And while the idea of jinxing the jackass or pushing him off the bed sounded wonderful, if damn juvenile, Scorpius was aware enough to know that he wasn't up to fighting with the other man at the moment. He felt like crap and it was going to take him a while to reconcile himself to what they'd done and how he was ever going to be able to live with it, much less how he wanted to behave towards the other man.

But would he be sending the right message if he just left and dealt with Potter later?

His headache made the decision for him, the Slytherin getting up and getting dressed with the damn kneazle's eyes following him the whole bloody time, obviously not trusting him for a second.

Once he'd found all his clothes and war wearing them Scorpius left the man's rooms as quickly as his body would move, having no idea that the Gryffindor's pet had stolen and hidden his wand while he was sleeping.

)

Waking up by degrees, as was his way, Albus slowly stretched his limbs out while groaning low in his throat, loath to get up at all. If he could have made a living staying in bed all day, with his warm covers and sleep…oh what a happy, happy man he'd be. But he couldn't, unfortunately, and he really did need to get up and go to the loo. He'd drunk way too much liquid the night before and he had a bad taste in his mouth that he needed to…

Mental thought stalling as he remembered the night before, Albus slowly lifted his head up from his pillow as his new thoughts jolted his brain into a state of awareness that usually required a shower and a strong dose of caffeine to achieve.

Holy Hogwarts…had that been…had he really…surely he hadn't….oh fuck.

Knowing in his gut that what he was remembering wasn't the result of some weird ass dream brought on from bad liquor, Albus turned his head to look at the pillow beside his, seeing the indent where another head had rested during the night. Shit. And upon investigation the sheets on that side still carried some residual warmth, though it was faded enough that Albus figured the other man had been gone for at least an hour.

Not that that mattered in the grand scheme of things.

He'd gotten drunk and shagged Scorpius Malfoy…the world was officially coming to an end.

This was going to scar him for life, the memories of the night before becoming clearer the more the horror of it all woke him up. He remembered that he'd been responsible for making the majority of the moves too, which just made it that much worse since he couldn't even say he'd been the one who'd been seduced. Nope, he'd been the one to give Malfoy the hand job, just as it had been entirely his idea for them to head to the bedroom so that he could shag the Slytherin properly.

And oh but he had, Albus thought with a groan, able to remember quite clearly just how sweet an ass the Slytherin possessed. It had taken some serious preparation, like all Malfoys the blonde had been a tight ass, but oh once he'd gotten the man all relaxed and loose beneath him…

Groaning at the thought, particularly when a mental image of what Malfoy had looked like as he'd thrusted inside him, the way those grey eyes had stormed and the little gasps and moans of pleasure that had escaped those surprisingly delicious lips…going to haunt him forever, Albus decided with another sound of dismay. Forever and ever.

Shifting back onto his back Albus raised his hands towards the ceiling in a 'Why?' gesture that pleaded with the fates to clue him in as to why the hell they'd let him make such a monumental, life altering mistake.

One Malfoy was no doubt plotting to kill him over at the Slytherin's earliest convenience, Albus thought bitterly as he dropped his hands back to his sides, too busy bemoaning his fate to react to the familiar feeling of his kneazle stepping onto and over his legs on the way up to face him.

Looking back over to where Malfoy had been sleeping earlier Albus wasn't really all that surprised to see Yue walk in a circle before curling up there to take advantage of the warmth. Nor was he terrible surprised to see that his pet was wearing an extremely disapproving look on his black face.

"I know. I know. I really fucked up last night, didn't I?"

Yue nodded firmly, in complete agreement of that statement.

"Thanks for that. You're always so supportive." Forcing himself to sit up Albus scrubbed his hands over his face, wishing he could brush the memories from his mind just as easily. Memories he was pretty sure were etched onto his brain to the point where only a memory charm would be able to erase them. Well no, actually, he didn't want to lose the memories so much as change the man he'd made those memories with. The sex had been pretty damn good considering how impaired they'd been at the time.

It sort of made him wonder just how good they would have been if they hadn't been drunk.

Groaning at the thought Albus threw back his covers and got out of bed, knowing that if he didn't get his bum in gear he'd be back under them and hiding like a kid in seconds. He needed the loo and a hot shower, he told himself. He'd think better and straighter then and…and maybe the fates would take pity on him and give him some clue as to how he was going to fix things before he suffered major brain damage.

)

Stumbling out of his bedroom and all the way to the bathroom, Albus quickly did his business and then headed for the shower, deliberately turning the temp up even higher than normal. It was funny really, Albus thought bitterly, how he'd always thought that it was actually a good thing that he tended to remember everything he'd said or done while under the influence of alcohol. He always knew if he needed to apologize for something, could help fill in the blanks for others, and in general those memories tended to encourage him not to drink too much unless he had a really good reason to do so.

Now he was sorta wishing he was one of those people who blacked out everything that happened to them when they over indulged.

At least he'd topped, though that wasn't necessarily a good thing since he'd bet the contents of his bank vault that Scorpius had wanted to kill him this morning for that reason alone. Because while he of all people knew not to believe gossip blindly, he had always figured that it was safe to believe that Scorpius really was the type to always top and never bottom. It just fit the man's personality, and he could at least testify to the fact that the one lover he knew they in common had been a bottom. So yeah, if he'd taken the man's ass's virginity he could see his name becoming numero uno on the wizard's shit list.

Come to think of it…why hadn't Malfoy tried to take him out while he was sleeping?

Yue's presence? His kneazle wasn't someone you wanted to mess with after all. Or maybe Malfoy hadn't remembered what had happened last night and that's why he'd left without striking out at him? Maybe the blonde had blacked it all out and was even now planning to act like it hadn't even happened for the sake of both their sanities. That would be awfully handy…so he wasn't really counting on being that lucky.

It was far more likely that the Slytherin had wanted time to formulate a punishment great enough to fit the perceived crime and he'd be seeing the man's wand pointed in his direction in the near future without warning. That would be fun.

Wincing at the mental images his brain was now generating Albus stuck his head back under the running water and seriously considered just drowning himself and getting it over with.

This was not the way to start the day.

)

Towel wrapped securely around his waist Albus opened the bathroom door ten minutes later, surprised to find his kneazle waiting for him on the other side with something in its mouth. Not a mouse or rat either, Albus thought as he crouched down, recognizing the item in question straight away as he took it from his pet's mouth. "A wand?" Not his either, which begged the question of where Yue had gotten it. Perhaps someone had dropped it in the hallway last night and Yue had picked it up?

Or… "Did you find this in my bedroom?"

Yue shook his head.

Albus considered this, studying his kneazle's face intently. "Did you take this out of Malfoy's pocket while he and I were sleeping?"

Nod.

Okay, technically speaking he should at least scold his pet for stealing, but Albus could follow the creature's thought process and had to agree that it was probably for the best that Yue had taken steps to insure that if Malfoy had woken up in a murderous mood the Slytherin would have had to do it physically instead of just offing him while he slept.

So instead Albus gave his best friend a good scratching under his chin and rubbed the kneazle's fringed ears for good measure as he thanked the creature for always having his back, smiling automatically when Yue purred his enjoyment.

Now he just had to figure out how to get the wand back to Malfoy without them actually having to interact, Albus thought with a sigh, as he had no idea what he was supposed to say to the Slytherin. Or if he should even say something at all since Malfoy would no doubt want to pretend it had never happened whether the blonde actually remembered what had happened or not. Assuming the man didn't intend to perform memory charms on the both of them or just plain jinx his ass into the next century for fucking his.

It had been a really nice ass too.

And thoughts like that could get him killed, Albus scolded himself as he rose to his full height and headed for the bedroom to get dressed, dropping the Slytherin's wand on his dresser. Once dressed the Gryffindor picked it up again, rolling the wand around in his palm as he pondered what the hell he was supposed to do with it. Leaving it propped up against the man's door or in a bag would be the safest thing to do, but he preferred to face his problems head on and the sooner he faced the other man the sooner he would know where they stood and just how much the Slytherin wanted his head on a platter.

Sighing at the thought Albus walked out of the room and headed for the coat rack he kept near his front door, sliding on his long leather coat before slugging his largest satchel over it across his chest, leaving the flap open.

Calling for Yue Albus picked the kneazle up and dropped the feline into the satchel, this being their normal way of transporting his pet while inside the castle.

And he'd let him out to wander as soon as they were in the Forbidden Forest, Albus promised the kneazle as he opened their door and stepped out, locking it behind them. Yue could catch his own breakfast if he wanted shortly.

"Provided I'm up to going anywhere besides the medical wing after this." Albus muttered to Yue as they crossed the hallway, the Gryffindor taking a deep breath before forcing himself to knock on the potions teacher's door, pulling the man's wand out of his pocket with the other.

They didn't have to wait long, Albus and Yue both a little amused when the Slytherin opened the door just enough for him to see them and glare at them.

"I thought I should-." Albus didn't get to finish his sentence, the blonde snatching the wand out of his hand on sight.

And then Malfoy slammed the door shut in their faces.

"That actually went better than I thought it would."

Shaking his head Albus decided to let it go for the moment and started on his way, thinking that he should keep his eyes out for anything interesting in the forest that the Slytherin might want for his storage room.

He'd always been a big believer in bribery.

)

Marching back into his parlor with his wand Scorpius was torn between being grateful that he had it back and that Potter had been the one to come to him and not the other way around, and mortified that he hadn't handled the whole thing better. He should have let the man finish his sentence at least. Now he looked like some immature teenager who couldn't handle a morning after conversation. Potter had come right over, for Merlin's sake, which just made him that much worse, leaving the way he had.

But he'd had a headache, dammit.

Lips curling into something perilously close to a pout Scorpius crossed his arms and stayed like that until he felt something bump into his foot.

Looking down the Slytherin studied the ball and then turned his attention to scanning the rest of the floor until he spotted the creature who'd thought it perfectly all right to body check the cat toy in his direction. Couldn't have done it any other way, Scorpius thought darkly, given how small the bloody thing was. It was about half of Potter's kneazle if you discounted all his feline's fur.

Like a wad of cotton, he thought as he lightly kicked the ball in the direction of the pet his grandmother had insisted he just had to have. Apparently she'd thought he'd react better, or at least be more inclined to be nicer to a small animal, so she'd gotten him a kneazle mixed with some kind of cat called a skookum, which was one of the smallest cat breed there were according to her.

The fact that Potter's pet could totally own his pet in a cat fight displeased him almost as much as the idea of owning the thing in the first place.

What the hell was he supposed to do with it, anyway, Scorpius fumed, kicking the ball back towards the cat as soon as it head butted it in his direction again. It probably couldn't even take down rodents without injuring itself.

Huh, maybe he could say Potter's kneazle was picking on it and that was why he had to give it back to her. For the thing's own safety, Scorpius reasoned, as he continued to send the ball back to the feline with nudges of his foot.

No…his grandmother knew him too well to think he'd take his cat being picked on by Potter's. That would be a declaration of war in his books and they both knew it. That he didn't even like his pet was beside the point. Until someone else owned it the dumb creature was his.

Dammit.


	3. Messy Situation

Messy Situation

Heading back to his rooms at around three Scorpius was feeling a bit better about life in general. Not a lot better, but he'd gotten through his second encounter with Potter and had done so with a great deal more class and maturity than earlier, thank Merlin. And to top it all off the man had given him a bag of cuttings after lunch, some plants he'd just happened to collect along the way while the idiot had been out walking in the Forbidden Forest like it was a child's park. The plants were an obvious bribe and peace offering, which he hadn't expected but appreciated none of less.

He'd planned on pretending nothing had happened anyway, so the bribe was like icing on the cake as far as he was concerned. He was even willing to give the man points for knowing exactly how to suck up to him.

Images of the man sucking a particular portion of his anatomy immediately came to mind, ruining his slight lift in mood completely as the blow job oriented thoughts refused to leave no matter what he tried to replace them with. Dammit, he was never drinking ever again and…and there was no way the alcohol hadn't effected his brain because there was just no way Albus Potter was as good in bed as his slightly disjointed memories told him the Gryffindor was.

Unfortunately the pep talk didn't work and Scorpius was still scowling as he opened the door and strolled into the hallway, stopping short when he got a look at the chaos and mess that greeted him. A neat freak to the core of his being Scorpius literally felt like he'd taken a hard blow to the chest as he took in the scattered papers, broken glass, pillow stuffing and other items strewn all over his parlor floor. And there, nearly smack dab in the middle of the room, was his stupid pet, who looked up at him with ink spots and some kind of brown liquid staining its poofy white fur.

Seeing red Scorpius marched over, items crinkling and breaking further under his shoes as he stepped on them. Reaching down he grabbed the feline by the back of its neck and held it up to eye level, his gaze fierce while the creature's blue eyes looked decidedly miserable.

Knowing his temper, and unable to justify harming something so much smaller and weaker than him, Scorpius took several deep, calming breaths and then turned on his heels and headed back the way he'd come.

Praying that his neighbor was in Scorpius pounded a fist on Albus's door, continuing to take deep breaths as he waited impatiently while the current ban of his existence whimpered in his other hand pathetically. And then the door opened and Scorpius tossed the furball in the Gryffindor's direction, Albus catching it easily. "It's yours now. Enjoy."

)

Blinking in shocked surprise Albus just stared as the blonde stomped back across the hallway and slammed the door behind him for good measure. The whole thing having come completely out of left field, it was a while before Albus even look down at what had been thrown at him, utterly shocked all over again to see what he was holding. Who in their right mind had given Scorpius a mini puffball for a pet? Who would give him a pet period, Albus added as he took in the state the poor creature was in.

Note to self, NEVER leave any living creature in Malfoy's care.

And shaking his head over the whole thing Albus gave the still whimpering creature a reassuring smile. "Better get you cleaned up since I have no idea what that brown stuff is. We can talk once you've had a bath."

Heading back inside Albus went straight to the bathroom, filling the sink with some warm water. That done he gently placed the shivering feline into said water and wetting a wash cloth went to work on the stained fur.

Yue, meanwhile, had come to see what Albus was up to and had naturally picked up on the foreign scent that certainly didn't belong in his territory. Especially when he hadn't invited Malfoy's animal over for a visit, the kneazle thought as he followed his nose and went about confronting the intruder by easily leaping onto the closed toilet lid and then onto the counter, heading directly over to the sink.

Taking in the mess sitting in his sink Yue cocked his head to the side and came to the immediate conclusion that this creature would never, even on its best day, pose any kind of threat to him or his person. He would have said it looked like a drowned rat, but he wouldn't insult a fellow feline by making that comparison unless it was called for.

Staring at the large creature watching him Scorpius's pet stayed right where he was, afraid to move least these strangers get mad at him too. Especially the one who was sort of like him, though this creature was very handsome and deadly looking. And big, he silently added. So much bigger than him.

"My name is Yue. What's your name?"

"Four-C."

"That's what Malfoy calls you?" He knew the Slytherin wasn't particularly fond of other sentient beings, but giving someone that crappy a name was just wrong on a number of levels in his books. Even a stupid girlie name was better than a number.

The smaller feline shook his head. "My person didn't give me a name. He calls me 'Cat', 'Hey, You' or 'Puffball' sometimes, but I don't think he means any of those to be my true name. Four-C is what the person who takes care of my mum called me."

A breeder, Yue assumed, one who referred to the kittens he or she bred by a code for identification purposes. Names were important things after all, and should never be given lightly. That rule was especially true when you were dealing with magical creatures, though the kneazle blood was terribly diluted in this one.

"What happened to your fur?"

Tears started to swim in the feline's eyes. "It…it was another creature. One who flew through the walls and sometimes was there and sometimes was like smoke. He made a terrible, terrible mess in our home and I tried to stop him but I couldn't and…and he kept laughing at me and saying I'd be in trouble and I am. My person thinks I made the mess but I didn't and now…and now he doesn't want me anymore."

Eyes narrowing Yue hissed a little, having a pretty good idea what was responsible for the mess the little cat had found himself in. Peeves just loved to cause trouble and messes and blame it on the pets that lived in Hogwarts. He was excellent when it came to framing them and they all hated the poltergeist with a united passion. Malfoy had obviously not put blocks around his rooms to keep Peeves out, but then the Slytherin had never had a pet before. Peeves hadn't been so dumb as to mess with the Potions teacher when he would be the obvious suspect with no one else to blame.

"Are…are you mad at me too?" He didn't smell anger, but the big cat had hissed.

"No. I just don't like Peeves. That I can't maul him angers me greatly."

He was sorry the kneazle couldn't maul the poltergeist too and said so.

Inclined to be polite now that he knew the situation, Yue relaxed his body and settled down on the counter to talk, curious to find out more about this animal that actually seemed to like the notoriously unlikable potions teacher.

"Are you two making friends then?" Albus asked Yue a short while later as he finished up his cleaning job.

Looking up at his person Yue wasn't sure you would call it that but nodded anyway. He was the dominant after all and therefore it was, unfortunately, his responsibility to look after the little submissive in his sink for as long as was necessary. Especially if Malfoy had dumped the feline on them for good, which wouldn't be good, Yue thought with a small frown of worry. The creature had already decided that Malfoy was his person. That meant something to any animal with kneazle blood in them.

Glad that the two were getting to know each other, Yue wasn't the most friendly of animals after all, Albus gently lifted the cat out of the sink and retrieving another towel carefully dried the creature off. When that was done the poor little guy looked a little like the end of a Q-tip, but at least it was mostly white now.

That done Albus informed Yue that he was going to change into his Animagi form and requested that the kneazle explain what that meant to their guest so that the cat didn't freak out and fall off the counter in surprise.

Turning his attention back to the cat, whose amusing appearance made his mouth twitch, Yue informed him that his person was going to change into an animal so that he could communicate with them better. Albus's animagi form was a bird too, and if he even thought about trying to pounce on him he would take him down hard since Albus was too soft hearted to do so.

Not wanting to be pounced on the white cat assured Yue that he wouldn't dream of pouncing on the feline's person. Especially when he watched the man become a bird, one that was definitely not the kind he would ever attempt to mess with. This was a bird of prey and those razor sharp talons made the man as deadly a creature as its kneazle.

"I'm going to explain things to him now." Yue informed the cat who really needed a name pronto. "You're too young to be understandable, especially since you're more cat than kneazle. Pardon our rudeness."

"You're so polite sometimes." Albus teased his kneazle, shifting his wings a little as he got more comfortable. He'd have preferred to perch, but needed to be close to Yue to hold a proper conversation.

Sniffing disdainfully Yue ignored the comment and gave his person a quick summary of what had happened and the fact that the creature thrusted upon them didn't even have a name so he couldn't even introduce them properly.

"He didn't even name it? That's low, even for him."

"He's a snake." Yue pointed out dryly. "They tend to stay low to the ground."

Albus couldn't laugh in his present form, but his voice was amused. "So do you think we should give him back to Malfoy because it's what he wants or because you don't like the idea of sharing your territory with another animal?"

"He's chosen Malfoy as his person. Unless he decides otherwise or the Slytherin becomes physically abusive I believe it would be best. He seems to think the man's willingness to kick a ball at him is a sign that Malfoy's warming up to him."

"Oh."

"Yes. We'll have to monitor the situation closely if Malfoy is willing to take him back."

Too true, unfortunately. Crap.

)

For all their sakes Albus opted not to try and return Scorpius's pet to the Slytherin right away. Instead he had Yue assure the cat that he would do his best to make that happen and then had put aside his intended work for the rest of the afternoon to play with his kneazle and their guest. Kneazles were very possessive of their people so he'd had to be careful about paying Yue slightly more attention, but the two felines had obviously had a lot of fun and were tuckered out when he left them in his room to eat their supper while he went to the Great Hall to get his and have a little talk with Scorpius.

Deliberately waiting until after the meal, no reason to spoil his appetite, Albus sadly cut back on his usual dessert intake so that he could follow after Scorpius when the other man got up to leave. The man didn't have much of a sweet tooth, which just went to show that the blonde did not have his head on straight when it came to the best parts of life.

"Malfoy, wait up."

Bracing for the possibility that Potter was going to demand that he take the cat back, which so wasn't going to happen, Scorpius stopped but gave the other man a look that made it clear he was still in one hell of a bad mood. "What?"

"You need to put shields around your rooms."

"What?"

"That's how Peeves got in to wreck your place. He likes to turn rooms upside down and blame the occupant's pets for it. Most people don't stop and think about whether or not their animals are actually capable of causing the damage." It went unsaid that Scorpius's cat was a ball of fluffy and was hardly capable of knocking something heavy over, much less tearing a room apart.

Disliking where this was going, especially since he'd been at a loss as to how the cat could cause so much damage earlier when he'd been cleaning up, Scorpius's stance stiffened even more, though his tone was considering when he demanded to know how Albus could know what had or hadn't occurred in his rooms earlier.

"Your cat told Yue and he told me while I was in my other form."

Interpreting that to mean Albus had appeared as a peregrine falcon at the time Scorpius smirked. "A little dangerous, that. Becoming a bird around two felines."

"Yours barely counts as half a feline." Albus shot back as he crossed his arms in front of him in a show of aggression. "And Yue would never hurt me. I'm his person. And that poor cat thinks you're his person so you better shape up and take him back ASAP, Malfoy or else."

Reacting to the man's body language Scorpius shot out his chin defiantly. "Or else what?"

"Or else I really will keep him and tell everyone that you named him 'Puffball' and that I took him away from you to spare it further abuse."

Eyes widening with insult Scorpius scowled. "I didn't name him that and I've never hurt him. He doesn't have a name. I just call him that sometimes."

"Good, because his name is Snow now."

"What? You can't name my pet for me!"

"I can since you couldn't be bothered to, and you gave him to me which makes him mine currently." Albus flashed a smirk that would have done any Slytherin parent proud. "And he likes it so that's what his name is now. Deal with it."

)

Snow had decided that he really liked Yue and Albus. They were very nice and had played with him lots and lots. Plus Albus had even given him a name, and he'd been wanting one of his very own for a very long time. His name was Snow and Albus was going to talk to his person and then everything would be alright. Yue thought it might take a little time before his person was willing to take him back but that would be okay so long as he got to stay where he was.

"Yue?"

"Yes?"

"If I stay here tonight can I sleep with you? I miss having someone to sleep with." He missed his mum and siblings a lot sometimes, especially at night when he was all alone in his little basket.

"When there isn't someone else in his bed I sleep with Albus." Yue informed him. "You may join us if you like. He won't mind." He could already tell that Albus would quite happily keep Snow if Malfoy refused to take him back. Which would be a little annoying, the kneazle thought to himself, but the cat knew he was in charge and so long as Snow respected that fact he was willing to share his space and person.

It wasn't like Snow would take up that much room anyway.

"Someone else sleeps here sometimes? You have two persons?"

"No. Albus in the only one I claim as mine. I meant…nevermind."

Pouting a little, he didn't like being kept in the dark, Snow decided not to push since it really didn't matter. "If someone else sleeps with him than where do you sleep?"

Ironically enough… "I have a bed, but it's not here." Albus had never brought a male back to this residence to mate with before, so that had never been an issue. The night before he'd been forced to sleep on one of the couch cushions since he'd had absolutely zero interest in being around if the two men occupying his usual bed had woken up and decided to do something other than sleep or kill each other.

"If need be Albus will make us a bed to sleep in, though that won't likely be an issue given how things stand between your person and mine." He knew all the teachers that worked at the school and Malfoy was the only one Albus would ever mate with drunk or sober. Not likely sober, Yue amended, though stranger things had happened.

"Our persons don't like each other very much, do they?"

"Not usually, no."

"That's too bad."

Yes and no, Yue thought as he got up and stretched a little. They were a hazard to each other's health whether they were friendly or at odds. Not that they probably couldn't learn to get along with each other properly, but he couldn't see Malfoy willingly bending his behavior enough to make that happen. And while Albus was pretty easygoing most of the time…Malfoy did know how to push the other man's buttons with alarming accuracy.

Hearing the front door being opened both felines immediately turned their attention in that direction and took off to greet Albus.


	4. Pet Retrieval

Note: I got bored at work and thus Snow's song was born. It's to the tune of 'I Am Cow' by Arrogant Worms, a song and band probably unknown outside of Canada for the most part lol.

Pet Retrieval

Yawning widely Snow thought to himself that he would be quite happy to wake up every morning on a nice warm bed with Albus and Yue close by. He liked not sleeping alone. And maybe he could ask Yue to ask Malfoy to let him sleep with him instead of the bed he was supposed to sleep in. He'd much rather sleep with his person if given the choice. But even if the man wouldn't let him he was still happy, Snow decided with a content little purr, because he had a name now and soon Malfoy would come and get him because Albus had explained what had really happened before to him.

In fact, he was so happy that he felt like singing, Snow decided, humming lightly to himself before he began to sing in his own language.

"I am Snow, hear me mew,

I am twice as cute as you,

And I'm super white and fluffy too,

Kneazle, kitty, pet and creature,

Malfoy is my person, People

I am Snow, I am Snow, hear me mew…"

"You're really happy to have a name, aren't you?"

Turning to look in Yue's direction, the kneazle staring back at him with amusement, Snow would have blushed if it were something he was capable of. As it was he stared down at his paws as he mumbled that yes, he was very happy to have a name now.

Shaking his head Yue got to his feet and stretched out his body, feeling relaxed and ready for the day ahead. And seeing a bird fly past the nearby window the kneazle licked his lips and checked the time on the bedside clock. It was still plenty early…Albus wouldn't be awake for another two hours at least. Perfect.

Starting towards the end of the bed Yue paused to look over his shoulder when Snow asked where he was going. "Outside to get breakfast."

"Your breakfast is outside? Why?" They'd gotten their dinner inside and he'd seen Yue's bowls.

"I'm going to catch my breakfast. There's a feeder nearby and the birds will be coming by." Albus hated watching one animal eat another so he did try to hunt when the man wasn't awake or around to see him do it. Hence the fact that Albus tended to get busy doing something else in the Forbidden Forest when he was looking for a meal.

Eyes going wide, Snow was properly awed at the idea that Yue could catch his own food. He'd tried to catch a bird once…it had not ended well. "Can I come and watch?"

"You'll have to be still and quiet."

"I will, I will!"

Shaking his head Yue knew he'd regret it, but he agreed to let the furball come with him.

)

Naturally Scorpius hadn't taken the Gryffindor's word for it when it came to what had actually happened in his rooms the day before. Instead he hunted up the Bloody Baron after his discussion with Potter and he'd asked the Slytherin ghost to have a little talk with the poltergeist about it, trusting that the man would be more than capable of finding out the truth for him. Peeves was too scared of the Slytherin to lie for long and everyone knew it. And as it turned out Potter had indeed been telling the truth about what had happened, unfortunately, which meant that after he'd gotten up and dressed for the day he'd gone about putting up shields around his rooms so that the poltergeist wouldn't be able to pay him a visit ever again. What he was going to do when he went after Peeves was still up in the air for the moment, it not being an easy thing to punish him. But he would come up with something, oh yes he would.

And after some debate Scorpius magically altered his front door to mirror his neighbor's, making it so that the pet he was shortly going to have to retrieve could come and go through it whenever it wanted. Apparently creatures with kneazle blood didn't like being confined, and even if that weren't the case he wasn't adverse to the idea of the thing spending as little time in his company and rooms as possible.

Even if Potter was of the opinion that the damn thing really liked him for some reason.

He was only taking the stupid feline back because he'd realized how much it would upset his grandmother if he gave the creature to a Potter of all people, Scorpius grumbled to himself. Even the fact that it would be well loved by the animal obsessed Gryffindor wouldn't have quelled her ice cold fury once she found out. And she would find out, she had the power.

Studying his handiwork the Slytherin decided that it was good enough, unable to actually test the spell without Snow present to walk through the door. Snow. What a stupid name. Not the worst name the thing could have gotten stuck with, but seriously, how unoriginal. He couldn't have come up with something way better if he'd cared enough to do so. White cat equally snow, please.

Rolling his eyes Scorpius shook his head and turned to head towards the Great Hall to get some breakfast. He'd walk back with Potter after the meal and retrieve his stupid pet from the man then, though Merlin only knew what bad habits and stupid ideas the thing had gotten in its pea sized brain in the time it had spent around Albus. The other man could sorta talk to him after all, so Potter might have even brainwashed the cat into driving him slowly crazy somehow. He'd have to keep an eye out, just in case.

He was so lost in thought as to how the Gryffindor could get the feline to mess with him that he didn't see them at first. The fact that they were so close to the ground didn't help, though the way the smaller one was dancing around the bigger one should have drawn his attention sooner.

"Oh yay, they're friends now."

His voice had his pet stopping mid dance, the feline making a distressingly happy sound before running towards him as quickly as his little legs could carry him. Potter's kneazle just kept walking, all cool and composed as per usual. Why couldn't his pet be that mature and badass? It was fundamentally wrong that Potter got the Slytherin version of a feline while he was stuck with a Hufflepuff cat on a sugar high.

When his pet reached him and started weaving in between his legs while purring Scorpius leaned down and scooped the puffball up, not wanting to trip over the damn thing because it had all the sense of a lemming.

"So you're keeping him now?"

Scorpius was tempted to tell the Gryffindor to bite him, but the man had done that before and he didn't want to tempt Potter's Weasley genes. Better he just ignore the annoying prat.

Leaning down to let Yue hop up and into his arms, Albus shrugged off the silent treatment he was getting from the Slytherin and instead turned his attention to his pet, asking the feline if he'd be correct in assuming that he'd been out catching his own breakfast and therefore didn't need to be fed. When Yue nodded his confirmation Albus did his best not to wonder what his kneazle had eaten and instead started heading in the direction of the Great Hall.

"Aren't you worried he'll eat someone's pet, letting him hunt when he likes?"

"He hasn't done it yet." Albus pointed out when the Slytherin fell into step beside him. "And he's too smart not to be able to tell a pet from a wild animal." Pause. "And I don't think you have to worry about Snow eating a pet if you let him wander either. It's the stairs you're really going to have to hope he's careful about."

"It would be a little funny to see him try to navigate them." Scorpius said aloud, though more to himself than to Albus.

Looking heavenward Albus silently asked the fates why they made Slytherin humor so twisted before asking the blonde just how old Snow actually was. He'd forgotten to ask before and he was curious as to how much bigger the ball of fluff was going to get.

"He's five months old…and part Skookum."

Given Malfoy's tone of voice he was going to guess that particular breed of feline was small to begin with, Albus decided, making a mental note to look it up when he had the chance to appease his curiosity and learn more about it. "Well odds are he'll get bigger, most house cats are well over a year old before they finish growing."

"Well he's more kneazle than cat, when do they stop growing?"

Albus and Yue gaped at Scorpius like he'd just told them that he'd always wished the Sorting Hat had put him in Hufflepuff.

Annoyed, their mouths were literally hanging open, Scorpius glared at them as he demanded an explanation for their reaction.

"Sorry, I just…are you sure about that? There are some disreputable breeders out there." Albus didn't continue, not wanting to hurt Snow's feelings by drawing attention to how small and un-kneazle like the feline was.

Snow was a sweet natured powderpuff.

Considering the possibility that maybe he could maybe get rid of his pet if he told his grandmother she'd been sold an inferior product, that would really piss her off, Scorpius mulled over the possibilities before naming the breeder listed on the papers he'd been given.

"Oh. Huh. No, you can trust him." Studying Snow more closely, aware Yue was doing the same, Albus could not see the kneazle in him but hoped for the feline's sake that that side of his nature took over soon. Scorpius would get along better with it then. Kneazles, even when they were young, tended to be very aggressive, un-affectionate towards most, and prone to demanding a certain level of respect and attention from their people and getting violent if that didn't happen.

Feeling like he needed to set an example for his kind Yue wiggled out of Albus's hold and took a seat on the Gryffindor's shoulder instead, perching there with the sort of posture and expression that said he was the ruler of all he surveyed and that anyone who thought differently was in for a world of hurt ASAP.

Watching the kneazle out of the corner of his eye Scorpius had to admit that the feline did look pretty sick, even more so compared with the ball of fluff he'd only just now realized he still carried. He hadn't even realized that he and Potter had been walking side by side and holding a normal conversation until now, which was just wrong on a number of levels.

Thinking much along the same lines Albus kept his face very blank as he pointed out that they could leave their pets to wander the school while they had breakfast since both had apparently eaten anyway and Yue was more than capable of looking after Snow.

"Why did you name him that, anyway?" Calling his hyperactive terror Snow made sense because of the thing's coloring, but he'd never even heard of the name Yue before.

"Oh, because the marking on his lower half look like a moon and stars. Yue is Chinese for moon. I wanted to name him after his coat, but Moon didn't strike me as a good name, and Luna would have only worked if he was a she. Lune was a no go either and to make a long story short Hugo knew how to say moon in a lot of languages and I settled on Yue."

"I see."

"Out of somewhat morbid curiosity, are you being polite to me so that I'll take your cat off your hands whenever it suits you?" Albus just grinned when the Slytherin glared at him. "I'm just asking. Because you can be your usual asshole self if you want, I'll still let him visit Yue and I. It's not like my bed isn't big enough for the both of them and me."

The fact that he had firsthand knowledge of the other man's bed just made Scorpius's scowl deepen as he informed Albus that he was perfectly capable of being polite, even when he was dealing with brain dead, useless Gryffindor prats.

Albus smirked, not the least offended. "Well since we're being so chummy at the moment, there's something I've always wanted to ask you. Does that broomstick you carry up your pert little ass all the time hurt, or does it give you a rush, Malfoy?"

Yue snickered on Albus's shoulder while the Slytherin turned all different shades of red.

"How dare-you have no business-was that a dig about what happened?" Scorpius finally got out, his eyes narrowing even as Snow let out a little yelp in response to being held a little tighter than he would have liked.

"Hey, careful!" Reacting to Snow's cry for help Albus reached out and tugged the little guy out of Scorpius's hold and then placed the feline in one of his robe pockets for safety.

"Give him back!"

"When you've calmed down." Was Albus's stubborn, 'not going to change my mind on this one' response. "And what did you mean by a dig? This isn't the first time I've told you you're a tight ass-ah." Light dawning Albus grinned evilly. "You thought I was rubbing it in your face, the whole me topping you thing."

A hiss of indignation was Scorpius's reply.

Shaking his head Albus would have rolled his eyes if it weren't for the years he'd spent with the Malfoy heir when they were students together. At times like this it would be extremely dangerous to his health to look away from the angry blonde for even a second. "Look, if you're worried that I'm going to tell someone that I took your ass virginity, don't. That's not something worth bragging about. It's more like nauseating." Actually it wasn't, but he wished it was so that he didn't have to fight the urge to check out Malfoy's ass every time he saw the man.

Opening his mouth to inform the bastard that he most certainly had not stolen his ass virginity Scorpius had to close it again because not only was Potter right, but contradicting him would mean he'd have to portray himself as the sort who wasn't man enough to always top.

Dammit, stuck between a rock and a hard fucking place.

As hard as Potters oh so sexy rock hard abs, Scorpius's treacherous subconscious purred out.

Hating that voice, and the fact that it too was right, Scorpius did what came natural to him and lashed out at the assehole causing him problems, informing the prat that he could damn well quit smirking like that since he had absolutely nothing to be smug about. Absolutely terribly in bed, Scorpius informed him, the worst he'd ever tangled in the sheets with. And on top of that they would never have gotten naked together if he hadn't been drunk at the time, that's how bad he was.

"I'll give you the last part, but not the first. I happen to be friends with someone who slept with Edward Davenport, and I got an earful about how crappy he is in bed. And you slept with him when we were in school together so yeah, I'm not the worst you've ever had. If you even remember us sleeping together in the first place."

Okay, yeah, Davenport had been a pretty crappy lay, which was why he'd only slept with the whiney little gobshite the one time before dumping his ass. Damn. And as for that other thing… "You do remember that night, right?" If only he remembered he was going to take his memories, put them in a Pensieve, and then force Potter to watch the whole thing so that the Gryffindor was just as traumatized by what they'd done as he was.

Scorpius watched Albus's face closely for his reaction, wanting to make sure the man wasn't lying when it was so obvious that he was weighing how to answer that.

"I remember most of it."

"Most of it?"

"Well hell, I was drunk you know. But yeah, I do remember enough to know that you definitely weren't my worst lay ever, if that makes you feel any better."

It actually sort of did, not that he needed reassurance about how hot he was in bed. He knew he was spectacular, thank you very much. But it had been his first time being on the bottom and it was good to know that he was just as awesome in that position as he was on top. "So who was your worst?"

"A gentleman doesn't tell."

Scorpius snorted. "I've got five galleons that says it was Druitt."

"Druitt? What the…who the hell told you I was dumb enough to sleep with that guy? I'd have slept with you sober first!"

Completely taken aback Scorpius asked him if he was serious.

"Of course I'm serious. Have you spent more than five minutes in that guy's company? His hamster is so totally dead."

Now he was just confused. "His hamster…what's his pet got to do with anything?"

"I didn't mean that he has an actual pet- it's an expression. Like saying someone's a few bricks short of a wall, or so dumb he tried to have a staring contest with a Basilisk. His wheel might still be turning but his hamster's dead. Get it?"

Scorpius nodded, indeed getting it and filing the insults away for future use. He could think of a number of students he could apply the insults to.

And thinking along the same lines Albus shook his head and mentally apologized to those poor students. Not that having Scorpius as a teacher wasn't reason enough to pity them in the first place. Poor, poor them.

"You owe me five galleons."

"Oh bollocks."


	5. Somewhat Heated Discussion

Somewhat Heated Discussion

Heading into the greenhouse Albus smiled as always by the sights and smells of the place, remembering his time as a student among the treacherous plants as he tried to fake interest in the subject. He'd always done fairly well in the class, his father's friend seeing to that, but plants or staying still had never been his thing. He preferred to be outdoors whenever possible, the greenhouse inherently wrong to him because the flora suggested he was outside when he really wasn't.

Yue didn't care for the place either, the feline reminding him of that fact by hissing at a leafy vine that had been creeping closer to its head.

"Okay, okay, let's find Neville, then, shall we?"

Wandering deeper into the greenhouse Albus and Yue found the other man happily surrounded by his plants and dirt, some replanting going on from the looks of things. "Hey there."

"Ah, Al, hello." Looking up from what he was doing Neville smiled at them. "And Yue as well, I see. What brings you two by?"

"Yue found this and brought it to me. I think it's yours." Pulling the watch chain out of his robe pocket Albus handed it over, delighted at the grateful smile that crossed his friend's face. He wasn't surprised to hear that the man hadn't even realized it was missing, Neville had been losing things for as long as his family had known him.

Putting the chain into his own pocket Neville came over to give the kneazle a good ear rub to show his thanks, smiling when the creature draped itself over Albus's shoulder so that it could concentrate on enjoying the attention.

Amused by the purring Neville smiled and then turned his attention to his friend's son. "So I saw you chatting with Malfoy the other day. I was surprised."

"Yeah, he has a pet now too, a mostly kneazle named Snow. He and Yue are friends."

Personally he saw himself as the unfortunate feline thrust into the role of babysitter, but Yue couldn't exactly argue his exact role in Snow's life at the moment.

"Well I suppose spending time with you could only do him some good." Neville rolled his eyes, recalling well the joys of teaching the Malfoy's latest heir. Ironically enough the Slytherin had been one of his best students academic wise, one needed plants to create potions after all, but personality wise he'd often caught himself wishing that the Devil's Snare would get ahold of the smart mouthed prat and teach him some respect.

Chuckling, he remembered how the two had gotten along back when he and Malfoy were students, Albus gave Neville a pat on the shoulder. "I doubt this is the start of a beautiful friendship between him and I so don't get your hopes up there. Not even I have the skills to loosen him up permanently." Temporarily, maybe, Albus thought wickedly, his mind enjoying the double entrée.

"Yeah, that stick up his arse is probably permanent."

He would have agreed, Albus acknowledged with a secretive smile, but he'd been up the Slytherin's beautifully tight ass and could attest to the fact that he'd been the only thing making the man yell and beg for more.

"I didn't realize you Gryffindors found my ass so interesting."

Not bothering to look in the direction of the eyes boring into his back, it would annoy the blonde more if he didn't, Albus just grinned at Neville as he responded to the barbed comment. "Well you do have a prime one, Malfoy."

Making a choking sound Neville went from embarrassment to utterly horrified beyond words in a split second, stammering out a statement that Albus was to never say such a thing in his presence again. He knew that both men were gay after all, and the mental images were nightmare inducing. Maybe even worse than his usual nightmares, which was saying something!

Aware of the Slytherin on an instinctual level Albus moved out of the man's way when he came striding over, all but shoving a piece of parchment in Neville's still horrified face.

"I need all that by tomorrow. Are you able to supply me or do I need to procured them elsewhere?"

Taking the paper from him Neville quickly read over the contents, glad for something to take his mind off the images that had been scarring his brain moments before. Plus Albus and Scorpius were staring into each other's eyes now in a way that was really creeping him the hell out, Yue giving him a pitying look which just made it that much worse. Not that anything would ever happen between them of course, Neville assured himself quite frantically, that would never, ever, happen. Albus had much better taste than that and Malfoy was a Malfoy. There was just no way.

"Well? Do you have what I need?"

"Don't take that tone with him, Malfoy." Albus ordered, subtly shifting so that he was half shielding the older man with his body as he started glaring too.

"Or you'll what, Potter? Sic your shoulder warmer there on me?" Scorpius returned, motioning towards Yue with a jerk of his chin.

Yue's insulted hiss overlapped Albus's response, which was to point out that the man's own pet could barely keep someone's hand warm, much less a shoulder blade. And while he might trust Yue to cover his back in a serious fight he certainly didn't need his kneazle to help him face off against a Malfoy.

"Insulting my family is not wise."

"Insulting Yue isn't either."

Shoving the parchment paper in Scorpius's face, turnabout was only fair, Neville announced that he could supply the Slytherin with everything that he needed and would personally deliver them to the potions storage room before the end of the day. If that was all he really needed to get back to his conversation with Albus thank you very much, the dismissal clear.

Tossing the paper onto the nearby table Scorpius sneered. "I'll leave that with you. Your memory was less than stellar when you were a student here, now that old age has set in…I'd rather you not forget something."

Thanking the powers that be that the Slytherin was no longer his student, thus requiring him to be civil, Neville turned his head to look at Albus. "Why did Harry have to save his father from The Room of Requirement again?"

"Everyone makes mistakes?"

"And that is precisely what you both are." Was Scorpius's final word on the matter before turning around and heading back the way he'd come, his face getting darker as he heard the two men rating his exit line behind him.

Gryffindors. Oh how he hated them.

)

At the request of the Head Master all the teachers remained in the Great Hall after the final meal of the day was over, bringing them up to date on some issues he thought they needed to be aware of before wishing them all a good night. On the positive side the whole 'meeting' had only taken fifteen minutes, but on the negative side it meant that all the teachers left the room at the same time and insured that Albus and Scorpius had to walk back to their rooms together or look like a baby in the eyes of the other.

Since he was stuck walking with the man anyway, and they were almost home so to speak, Albus figured it was as good a time as any to reinforce what he'd said earlier. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to be a little more respectful of Neville. He has enough to deal with without you making your relationship worse."

"Relationship." Scorpius repeated, the idea of having any kind of relationship with the Herbology teacher making him faintly nauseated.

"You know what I mean. You need what he grows in the greenhouses for your potions classes. And yes he is obligated to supply you with everything he can to cut back on school costs, but he always comes through for you when he can and a little thanks once in a while wouldn't kill you."

Rather than answer Scorpius just gave Albus a look that was meant to remind the other man that it wasn't in his nature to be nice to people and that by being civil to the older man he was in fact treating the other professor better than he did a great many of the people who would soon be living in the school once again.

Making an exasperated sound Albus shook his head. "If I didn't have intimate knowledge of it I'd think you really did have a huge broomstick up your ass."

A hiss that would have done Yue proud crossed Scorpius lips. "The next time I hear you bring my ass into a conversation I'm going to personally see to it that you can't sit on yours for a very long time."

"Being mean to someone I consider family is not a good way to try and get into my trousers, Malfoy." Albus drawled out with a smirk. "Not that you'd have access to my ass even if we did get naked again."

"You only topped me before because I was drunk!"

"Ah, ah, nice try but no. My memories of that night might be a little hazy on some points, but I remember quite clearly how vocal you were about how much you LOVED having me shag your ass. In fact, I distinctly remember you nearly busting my eardrums with your demands that I take you as hard and deep as I possibly could. But if your memory's a little rusty there I'd be happy to get you a Pensieve and show you."

Cheeks flaming with color Scorpius sputtered as he repeated the fact that he'd been drunk and nothing he'd said or done while under the influence counted.

Finding the blush spreading over those knife edge cheekbones ridiculously sexy for some reason Albus moved to stand in front of the other man, reaching out to grab Scorpius's chin so that he could force him to meet his eyes. "You know what I think? I think you actually want to be topped but are too much of a Malfoy to admit it. That's why you have an even worse dating record than my cousin Fred."

"No one has a worse dating record than your cousin!"

"He's managed to stay friends with at least some of them, which is probably more than you can say."

"If I liked them well enough to be friends I wouldn't dump in the first place, you stupid prat."

When Albus just smirked at him Scorpius belatedly realized that he hadn't objected to the Gryffindor's first statement, which had actually been more insult than the comparison to Fred Weasley. "Quit smirking at me like that. And I don't want to be topped, are you mental? If you really did remember that night you'd remember I fought to top too!" Of course he'd lost, but he had tried, dammit.

"So you're saying that I'm special, Malfoy?"

"If your 'special' refers to someone with mental or behavioral problems then yes, Potter, you're VERY special."

Laughing in delight Albus had to admit that he was rather enjoying this. He'd never understood why James got such a kick out of riling the Slytherin up whenever the opportunity presented itself but he sort of got it now. Scorpius Malfoy was actually pretty funny and adorable when he was wound up enough to lose his head. Not that James would ever think that about Malfoy, his brother and the other man got along about as well as two wet, starving cats tied up together in a bag, but still…

Jabbing the man in the chest with his finger Scorpius demanded that the man stop laughing or else.

"Or else what?" Albus managed to get out, just chuckling and grinning like an idiot now. "You lost your last fight with me, remember?"

"For the last time you only won because I was more pissed than you!"

His quirky, Weasley sense of humor still in play, Albus moved closer and tipped his head slightly to the side, deliberately stopping just a breath away from the other man's lips. "You know, Malfoy, I'm getting a little tired of you insisting that I won because you were pissed that night. Especially when we both know you're jonesing for another go."

Putting his hands between them Scorpius tried to shove the Gryffindor away, surprised and a little turned on by the fact that the other man wasn't moving. Potter was even stronger than he looked, and dammit, retreating was out of the question.

"Get out of my face, Potter."

"I'd say make me, but you've just made it clear you aren't up to that."

The sound Scorpius made was perilously close to a growl, mortifying him.

Instead of backing down Albus closes the minuscule gap between them and sealed their lips together to stifle any more sound effects. For good measure he lifted one hand to cup the back of Scorpius's head to keep him where he wanted him, wrapping his free arm around the other man's waist for good measure.

Shock at the unexpected maneuver, they didn't have alcohol to blame this time around, Scorpius's ability to think rationally was short circuited by the extremely thorough tasting Albus's tongue was making of his mouth, the man's skill undeniable…though he would deny it until his dying breath in reality later. And while there was some small portion of his brain that said he really did need to stop this, especially since he was letting the Gryffindor control the snogging completely, it wasn't until he felt a hand rubbing one of his ass cheeks quite suggestively that enough common sense kicked in for him to bite down hard on the tongue that had been teasing his own.

Pulling his head back, the taste of his own blood in his mouth, Albus stared into the stormy grey eyes shooting lightning bolts in his direction and couldn't help but smile a little just to push the Slytherin that much further.

"You know, Malfoy…you taste a hell of a lot better without alcohol on your breath."

Letting go of the now sputtering Slytherin Albus didn't quite know what to make of the fact that he really wanted to snog the man more. Wanted to do a lot more to and with him, actually. Those weren't good wants to have, especially when the blonde had just made his willingness to draw blood very clear.

"If you ever try to do something like that again I'll….I'll…"

"Let me know what you think of something."

Walking towards his door without another word Albus had just enough time to open it before he felt hands touch his back, pushing him across the threshold and into the hallway. Stumbling forward Albus had just enough time to regain his momentum and spin around before the door slammed shut behind Scorpius.

Huh. Things just got even more interesting.

)

Shaking his head in disgust Yue stood in his hallway with his tail swinging back and forth in disapproval as he listened to the sounds of raised voices coming from the parlor. He supposed he could sleep in the parlor again once the argument no doubt moved from that room to the bedroom, because that was definitely where this argument was going in the very near future, but in the back of Yue's mind was the knowledge that Snow would be all alone if Malfoy slept over again and that needed to be dealt with first. Snow had mentioned that he'd been a little scared the night Malfoy hadn't come back to their room, Hogwarts still a strange place that intimidated the furball unless someone was with him. At the very least he should probably go over and reassure him that nothing bad had happened to the Slytherin and that the assehole who would probably be rolling around naked with his person very shortly wasn't staying away because he was mad or anything.

Heaving a sigh Yue knew he had to be the only responsible one since their people certainly weren't, the kneazle abandoning his intent to wait the fight out as he headed back towards the front door instead, passing through it easily.

Crossing the hall he considered knocking on the solid part before entering, which would be the polite thing to do. But Snow was pretty young and possibly asleep already, Yue weighed in, and if he didn't have to wake the feline up and have to deal with him….

The question was solved when Snow's head appeared through his own magical cat door, his little white head looking more than a little weird since it gave the feline the appearance of being one of those poor dead creatures who got their equally dead heads mounted on walls like trophies. "Hi, Yue!"

Lips twitching, he would not laugh, Yue nodded. "Snow."

"Did you come over to see me?" Snow asked, utterly delighted by the idea.

"Yes. I thought you should know your person might not be coming home tonight. He and my person are…otherwise engaged."

"Oh. I thought they didn't like each other very much."

Apparently they made exceptions when it came to drunk or angry making out slash sex, Yue thought to himself while he gave the excuse that the two could get along occasionally and tonight seemed to be one of those nights.

Snow didn't really understand but humans were really weird sometimes so he shrugged that off. He was glad Yue had come over to tell him that his person wasn't coming home tonight, he'd been waiting and waiting by the door for him after all. He didn't like the idea that he was going to have to be all alone though, he hated being by himself.

With that in mind Snow asked if Yue wanted to come in and see his rooms. His person wasn't around to object after all, and maybe they could play for a while until he got too sleepy to care that he'd be all by himself later.

Unable to say no when he was on the receiving end of Snow's pleading big eyes, which reminded the kneazle of Hugo Weasley in their power, Yue agreed to stay for a while.

It was better than listening to their people mate after all.


	6. Strange Bedfellows

Strange Bedfellows

By the time the two had made it to Albus's bedroom they had the finer points of their night all worked out. In order to start on fair footing Scorpius would be allowed to top the first time without any attempt on Albus's part to take over. After that they would both make sure they were good and stretched and then it was anyone's game. Whoever topped the most times in the hours before they had to head to the Great Hall for breakfast was the winner, no arguments or excuses. And finally, whoever was the winner would receive a very special reward, which was a blow job from the loser in said loser's office so that the man in question would have to remember they'd lost every time they were in said office. Aka for the rest of their teaching careers or until they wimped out and requested a new one.

Having no body issues whatsoever Albus stripped down as soon as they were inside his bedroom, taking pleasure in the way Scorpius watched him rather than follow suit. That was just fine with him, the Gryffindor thought with a smile as he moved in and reaching out began to very slowly undo the buttons on the other man's shirt. He loved stripping the clothing off his lovers, especially the first time when every inch of flesh was new to him, yet to be touched and tasted. And while this wouldn't be the first time they got naked together, it sort of was because they hadn't been in the right frame of mind to appreciate each other's bodies as anything other than the means to an orgasm.

And besides, the longer this took the more time Albus figured he had to get his mind around the fact that he was actually going to let Scorpius Malfoy take his ass's virginity. He'd never been attracted to men who were tops, it was as simple as that. And while he'd fingered his own ass to see what it was like that was all the action it had ever seen or thought it would. But in the heat of the moment they'd both sworn to follow through with this and for better or for worse their inability to back down was something they had in common.

In the end he was a man of his word, and as he finished undoing Scorpius's trousers, letting them fall to the ground, Albus eyes conveyed the fact that he was going to take whatever the Slytherin could dish out. Though the fact that the blond was currently going commando distracted Albus for longer than it should have, he had to admit, his eyes lingering there not out of worry but actual interest. In fact, they were both eyeing each other with enough heat that they didn't doubt that it didn't matter which one of them was in the driver's seat so to speak. Sometimes the chemistry was just so hot there was no way you could fuck it up and this was definitely the case here.

Allowing himself to be pushed onto his bed Albus stretched out on it like he was one of their pets, flexing and putting his muscles on display as he did so before tucking his hands under his head. He wasn't good at giving the reins over and the more he kept his hands to himself the better. Though it was going to be harder than he was going to be to keep his hands where they were, Albus had to admit as Scorpius climbed on top of him.

Resting his weight on his knees Scorpius ran his hands up the length of Albus's arms until they reached the unruly black hair he would mess up even more shortly. "Thinking to make me do all the work, Potter?"

Moving his lower half like a wave Albus rubbed their bodies for the briefest of moments before assuring Scorpius that he'd take over if the Slytherin felt he couldn't top him properly without help.

"Potters. Always needing to be put in their place."

Opening his mouth to point out that this was his place, Albus never got the words out as his mouth became very occupied trying to keep up with the other set of lips that were currently devouring his own. Which was just fine with him, the Gryffindor thought with an appreciative moan, because the things this Slytherin could do with his tongue gave way more pleasure than trading zingers with him. In fact, from now on they should really do this for hours instead of fighting. They'd be happy and their fellow teachers would never have to worry about them killing each other ever again. This was totally worth keeping Malfoy alive for.

Thinking along the same lines Scorpius was only sorry they hadn't thought of this sooner. What better way to shut Potter up than snog the hell out of him? Not only did it render the other man incapable of saying much of anything, but the sounds the Gryffindor was making were ones he could definitely listen to all day long. Noisy in the best possible way, Scorpius thought smugly as the man in question actually whimpered when he raised his head, ending the latest series of kisses.

He was only getting started though, Scorpius turning his attention to Albus throat and then further down the Gryffindor's body without using his hands unless he needed to brace his weight with them. If Potter was going to take his hands out of the equation than he was going to do the exact same thing despite the very real and demanding craving to put his hands on every inch of the other man's body. Twice.

Before they hadn't bothered much in terms of foreplay, too pissed to think beyond the end goal, and while Scorpius was certainly tempted to use his mouth to turn the idiot beneath him into a pile of hormonal goo, he knew that stamina was going to be very important and had to be considered. Potter was in better physical shape than him, so weakening him this way was a good plan, but could backfire in terms of the time it would take to do it right. Not to mention the fact that the Gryffindor might decide to return the favor and if he ended up goo too and passed out than Potter would win.

Aware that Scorpius's full attention wasn't on his body, which was just a little insulting, Albus's licked his lips to savor the taste of the Slytherin before deliberately getting the blond's head back in the game. So to speak. "If you need step by step instructions on how to top a real man I suppose I could help you out. Or I could top and show you how it's done, Malfoy."

"I wouldn't have taken you for the dirt talking type, Potter." Scorpius commented as he swirled his tongue around the man's belly button in retaliation for the insinuation.

Taking that as a challenge, plus he wanted to be able to take over as soon as possible, Albus looked down the length of my body to meet Scorpius's eyes and began to tell the Slytherin exactly what he planned to do to the man once all bets were off. Namely the fact that he found Scorpius's pale skin so damn tempting that he was planning to tie the man to his headboard and then nibble and suck that beautiful white flesh until Scorpius's body looked like a leopard from the neck down to mid thigh. Scorpius wouldn't be able to move without feeling the bruises, or remembering how they'd gotten there. And in particular he couldn't wait to get his mouth on the man's arse, though he'd be using something else entirely to leave a lasting ache deep inside Scorpius's pretty little rear where only he'd touched and fucked.

"The sooner you let me take over." Albus added evilly, "The sooner that happens."

"Or the sooner I shag you into this bed until you're too tired to do any of that." Scorpius shot back, not about to admit for one minute the affect the man's words had had on him. "Now get the damn slick out, Potter."

Retrieving the bottle of lubricant as ordered, Abus handed it over with much ceremony before lying back down on the bed with an expectant look on his face. Thank Merlin years in the public eye had given him a decent poker face, plus the lift fucking with Scorpius's head had given him. It made him less nervous.

Setting aside the bottle for a moment Scorpius grabbed one of the pillows and with some maneuvering shoved it under Albus's back for some support, the Gryffindor so surprised by the consideration that he actually relaxed a little as he watched Scorpius turn his attention to applying the lubricant to his fingers. He tensed up again when he was ordered to spread his legs, even though he knew tensing up was the last thing he should do.

Doing as ordered Albus opened his legs and did his best to control his breathing and relax his body as Scorpius's fingers started to stretch him open, moving his hands from behind his head to the blankets beneath him, clawing at the material before fisting as he did his best to get used to the intrusion.

Knowing that he was the first Scorpius made an effort to go slow, not an easy thing given how hot and bothered he'd been before Albus started reacting to the two fingers he'd managed to work inside the man, the moans and bit off gasps damn sexy. In the hopes of loosening him up quicker Scorpius used his other hand to start jerking the Gryffindor off, distracting Albus from what he was doing.

Scorpius's plan worked pretty well, to the point where Albus had to demand that the Slytherin fuck him instead of toying with him. And thankfully, for once, Scorpius was willing to listen to him and gave them both what they wanted, though Albus cursed a mean streak for the first minute or two until he adjusted to having Scorpius's cock buried deep inside him.

But once Albus adapted to the very new sensations and position, well then the fun started as they learned what the other liked and how best to drive the other crazy with passion, so that they were both mindless to even their desire to drive the other over the edge first which was practically second nature to them. All that mattered was keeping their bodies entwined and connected, the sweat running down their bodies and the need to climax making that very difficult.

Coming first Albus tightened around Scorpius like a vise, Scorpius continuing to shag him through his climax for as long as he could before coming too, both collapsing into a sweaty heap after that while they tried to recover and remember that they couldn't just go to sleep and call it a night.

Things were just getting started after all.

)

Opening his eyes the next morning, lips already curved in a pleased little smile, Scorpius stared up at the ceiling and then turned his head toward the clock that sat on the nearby bedside table, reading the time before shifting his attention to the man still passed out on the pillow beside his. Scorpius wasn't surprised to see that Potter was still dead to the world, frankly he was surprised he'd woken up at his normal time instead of sleeping in for once given how little sleep he'd gotten the night before. Still, he couldn't remember the last time he'd woken up feeling this good and used, and could most definitely get used to it.

The fact that he'd lost didn't even bother him, which was not a thought that most Malfoys, least of all him, were comfortable with having. But at the moment he didn't see how hours of amazing, constant sex could possibly be a bad thing even if he had been on the bottom for much of it.

Content to wallow in bed and consider the future for a bit, Scorpius could have done without the annoyingly loud alarm clock that went off twenty minutes later and startled the hell out of him. Not really all that surprising though, since this Potter was known to sleep like the dead. Turning it off automatically Scorpius watched the Gryffindor wake up very slowly, amused at the way the man's eyes went bigger and bigger as he became aware of who was in bed beside him.

"Uhm…hi?"

"Morning."

Not knowing what else to say Albus sat up and scrubbed his hands over his face, trying to wake up faster since Scorpius had actually hung around this time. He hadn't been expecting that, though he hadn't exactly been thinking clearly either.

"So I've been thinking, Potter…"

"That's usually not a good thing." Not to mention it was too early in the morning for him to think clearly, especially without caffeine and a hot shower first. "And if this is where you demand a rematch…well I'd be open to discussing that after breakfast." He was pretty sure he'd win again after all, and more sex of last night's variety was more than welcome. But he needed to be able to think when he made any deals with this man, he knew that much.

Ignoring the suspicious looks he was getting, he'd be insulted if the Gryffindor hadn't thought he needed to be cautious, Scorpius continued from where he'd left off. "I think you and I should take advantage of the fact that we're currently living across from each other and single."

Tired as he was, Albus could only think of one way they could take advantage of their current living arrangements. "You want to be…friends with benefits doesn't work, nor does enemies…neighbors with benefits?"

"If you like. I'm willing to be flexible when it comes to positions."

"You are surprisingly flexible." Albus agreed, not knowing what else to say as he tried to process the rest of it. "You're serious?"

"Would I suggest it if I wasn't?"

"Slytherin humor usually only makes sense to other Slytherins." Albus pointed out dryly. Shoving aside the covers he got off the bed and walked around it with a great deal of stretching and yawning. Coming around to Scorpius's side of the bed Albus gave him a questioning look. "No deals until after I've showered and eaten…but I'm willing to hear more of the details if you want to have said shower with me."

He couldn't argue that they both needed one, Scorpius pushing aside the covers and moving to get out as well while pointedly ignoring the hand the Gryffindor was offering him. But the movements made the oddly pleasant ache in his ass decided unpleasant, making him rethink the whole joining the man in the shower thing. Even if Albus left his arse alone…yeah, probably not the best idea.

Grinning evilly, he could always blame it on not being completely awake later, Albus leaned down and before Scorpius could realize what he intended to do Albus scooped the other man up and into his arms, ignoring the insults and dire threats thrown in his direction as he headed for the shower.

"The hot water will do you good."

"DAMMIT, POTTER!"

)

Much more awake and only a little annoyed with Potter a short time later, the man really knew how to use his hands, Scorpius let himself into his rooms and headed straight for his bedroom so that he could get into clean clothes before heading for breakfast. Getting dressed quickly, there wasn't much time, Scorpius dealt with the necessities and then headed for the parlor to find out why the hell his silly pet hadn't ambushed him yet. Not that he cared, really, but Potter had reminded him to check on the fuzzball before he'd left and since he wanted the Gryffindor in his bed he didn't see the harm in humoring him.

Stubbornly ignoring the fact that he wasn't entirely steady on his feet just yet, Scorpius walked over to the cat bed while stifling a yawn with his hand, absently noting that the feline had enough water and food in its dishes currently. And then looking down into the bed Scorpius got quite the surprise, the Slytherin's eyebrows rising in reaction to the unexpected visual.

"Seriously?" Staring at the kneazle curled up in Snow's cat bed, the cat is question lying in the almost circle Albus's pet had made with its body, Scorpius had to remind himself that his own animal wasn't old enough for sex and even if he wasn't kneazle cats weren't gay. Were they? Because that would just be horribly ironic given where he'd just come from.

Either way he supposed that he should just be grateful that Yue had decided to bunk here instead of annoying him and Albus with his presence. And as though he could hear what Scorpius was thinking Yue's eyes opened in a startling flash to meet his, the look in them suggesting that he wasn't terrible pleased to see the Slytherin so early in the morning.

"You're the one who's trespassing."

A low hiss greeted that statement, Yue getting to his feet before hopping out of the basket to face Scorpius more directly. The lack of the bigger cat cause Snow to wake up while the two had their little staring contest, the feline making a sad sound when he realized Yue was no longer with him, though the next noise to come out was one of happy glee to see that not only was his bestest friend in the whole wide world was still here, but his person was back too!

Getting out of the basket with half the amount of grace Yue had shown doing the same thing, Snow rubbed himself against the embarrassed Yue in a loving hello before hurrying over to do the same to his equally embarrassed Slytherin.

Together the two were embarrassed of Snow' behalf as the furball danced around them as he told them how thrilled he was that they were there.


	7. Touche, Touche

Note: Snow's newest song for this chapter is to the tune of 'Home On The Range'. Hope you enjoy.

Touché, Touché

With some arguing, name calling, and displays of extreme stubborn bullheadedness, they were still a Malfoy and a Potter after all, Scorpius and Albus were able to come up with ground rules that suited them both when it came to the 'neighbors with interest' idea. Their arrangement would remain between the two of them, and if they were somehow to be discovered they would shut their traps tight and refuse to discuss the matter with whoever thought it was their business to stick his or her nose in theirs. If either wanted to end the arrangement or get involved with someone else they were to say so first. They weren't dating they both agreed, but neither was the sharing type either. Who was on top would be rotated, but subject to negotiation if so desired by them both. The only other big rule, the small ones Scorpius had generated not ones Albus was planning to bother to remember, would be no sleeping in each other's beds until morning because that was far too couple-y in Scorpius's books, not to mention a good way to get caught by someone else.

Though that rule had already been broken three times before they had reached mid-September, Albus thought with a smirk as he sat with his back pressed up against a tree, watching Yue and Snow play around in the fallen leaves. Not that either had done it on purpose, or at least he hadn't, but now that school had actually started they were busy and sex was not only a really great stress reliever, but it could make you sleep like a baby after a hard day if done right.

And boy did they know how to do it right.

His smirk turning into a grin as he thought about the past couple weeks, Albus couldn't help but be amused as he imagined what the reaction would be from their students if they knew why their Potions instructor hadn't maimed them yet despite all their many comments about Snow. That might change in the future, but for now the Slytherin was handling the jokes made about his fluffy kitten fairly well.

Which is to say that he'd only assigned them incredibly hard potions and homework to do instead of outright cursing them the way Albus was pretty sure the Slytherin wanted to.

"Babysitting?"

Looking over in the direction of the voice Albus found his smirk again. "Yup. Come to check on your baby?"

Scowling, Scorpius seemed to be debating whether to leave or not, the Slytherin surprising Albus when he chose to walk over instead and take a seat beside him, the tree trunk wide enough for both of them. The other man's long blond hair was unexpectedly damp in its habitual low ponytail, suggesting Scorpius had recently showered despite the fact that it was in the middle of the day. For his part Albus had to work hard not to lean in closer to appreciate that fact, especially since there were a few droplets of water stubbornly clinging to that pale, lovely throat he'd become very fond of nibbling on.

Instead of applying his tongue to the Slytherin's skin Albus rather hurriedly gestured towards their pets, thankful when Scorpius looked over at their animals instead of at him. Yue's attention was currently on a bird that had landed nearby, while Snow all but vibrated with eagerness from his best friend's side.

"So…they're catching something to go with their tea?"

Albus chuckled, fairly sure that Snow was the reason that Yue hadn't been able to catch his own breakfast recently. "They're more into milk than tea, but bird goes with everything in their books. Most of their songs revolve around birds in some way or another."

"They sing." Scorpius repeated, his tone skeptical.

"Well yeah, what do you think Snow's doing when he makes those humming/purring noises? Your boy loves to sing, more than any kneazle I've ever met. He's even come up with his own stuff, which is impressive given how young he is. They're pretty cute, actually, I've listened to him a few times while I was in Animagi form."

"Okay…."

"Want to hear my favorite of his?" And not waiting for the other man's response Albus grinned and launched into the simple but pretty adorable in his opinion.

"Snow, Snow is my name,

And catching birds is my game,

I seldom catch one, but it's terrible fun,

And the skies are not cloudy today."

Lips twitching a little in amusement, he couldn't help it, Scorpius could only hope that Albus was the only human being who ever actually heard what his pet was apparently saying when he made those weird noises in his throat. Though it would be kinda sick if he could understand Snow the way the Gryffindor could. But that would require him to develop an Animagi form, and he'd always figured it must not be worth the effort to learn because if it was all the witches and wizards would want to adopt an animal form they could take on at will, right?

"So has he ever actually caught a bird yet?"

"Not without Yue's help, no."

"Figures."

)

Content to stay where they were and shoot the breeze until they had to head back into the castle to teach, Albus asked why Scorpius had really come over since they both knew that the Slytherin hadn't come looking for Snow. From what he could see Scorpius was fine with Snow going off on his own as much as possible, and never seemed worried when the fluffball didn't show up at night. Of course that was usually because Snow was off doing something with Yue or sleeping in Albus's rooms since the two never stuck around when he and Malfoy were in bed together. Which was really for the best for all concerned in everyone's books.

"Walking off my annoyance. Bad potions explosion that shouldn't have happened."

Wincing, Albus asked if anyone had ended up in the Medical Wing.

"No, thankfully. If I'd had to deal with even more whining than what the little brats were already doing over their messed up robes I wouldn't be out here talking to you. I'd be explaining to the Headmaster, again, why the students came crying to him about my evil, son of a Death Eater behavior."

Since there was no point in pointing out that it wouldn't kill the Slytherin to be nicer to his students Albus opted to ask who had caused the potions explosion in the first place.

"Silica Pettyfer."

"Silica? Seriously? That's unusual. I thought she was one of your best students, if not the best." She was one of the school's best students, come to that. The fifth year Ravenclaw was quite brilliant.

"She is. That's why I said it shouldn't have happened in the first place. Wouldn't have happened, if she hadn't deliberately been sabotaging her potion in the first place because over the summer she turned into a daft, boy obsessed twit." Getting angry all over again Scorpius cursed the fact that girls turned into such idiots when they got older. Why couldn't they just keep thinking boys had cooties and crap?

If he'd had stories to throw in the Slytherin's face about how Scorpius had dealt with his teenage hormones Albus would have, but even when they'd been teenagers the blond had always been remarkably self-composed. Depressingly so. There were also stories Malfoy could throw in his face so Albus wisely didn't go there, not wanting to mentally revisit those years.

"Why would she want to screw up in front of the boy she likes?"

"She's all gaga over Pendragon. Think about it."

"Ah. Gotcha." Trevor Pendragon was another fifth year Ravenclaw, the boy shaping up to be a world class arse as far as he could see. The boy thought he was the greatest thing since the invention of the wand and did not take kindly to anyone showing him up at anything. Silica was smarter that Pendragon, and therefore not someone her fellow Ravenclaw would ever want to hang out with, much less date. Little arsehole. "She'll wise up eventually."

"Yeah, after she's graduated and can't get a proper job because her grades were crap."

"It won't be that bad. She's a smart girl. I mean we all do stupid things when we're teenagers to try and get the notice of someone we like. I can't even tell you how many bruises I got showing off on my broom during Quidditch games." Paying for them now too, Albus thought ruefully, his body starting to show its wear already.

"And the way that idiot Chaser of yours kept feigning shoulder pain so you'd give her back rubs." Not that he'd seen it, but he'd heard about it around the school. The girl in question had had to see Potter with his tongue all but down a male Hufflepuff's throat before she'd accept that she didn't stand a chance.

"That too, though who doesn't appreciate a good shoulder massage? I give amazing ones."

Scorpius rolled his eyes.

"Questioning my abilities, are you? Well I'll show you. Come here in front of me." Albus flexed his fingers in preparation, which were always in good shape for a rub since he spent so much time petting and stroking his kneazle and now Malfoy's. Plus the unusually warm weather they'd been experiencing the past couple days meant that there was no jacket or coat to get in his way, so he'd be able to dig his fingers into all those tense muscle fairly well. Though he'd have preferred the Slytherin naked, naturally.

"Are you serious? Have you lost what mind you have? Anyone could pass by."

"And just assume that we're getting along better and our friends now. I mean everyone is talking about the fact that our pets are all but inseparable as it is, and let's face it, keeping a secret in this castle isn't exactly easy. Better people mistake us for friends than figure out the truth, right? And besides, you can't tell me you couldn't use a shoulder rub given how much tension you carry normally, much less when you're irked like now."

"No."

In a mischievous mood, as well as wanting to get his hands on his Malfoy for a bit of a warm up that would have the Slytherin thinking about him for the rest of the day, Albus kept his voice relatively conversational as he threw out the offer that if Scorpius were to let him give him a shoulder rub he'd let the blond have top position that night.

As bait he'd chosen well, Albus watching the other man mull over the offer without any real thought behind it, the answer obvious to both of them before Scorpius nodded in acceptance and got up and then sat down again in front of him, warning him or dire consequences if he did more harm than good. And the massaging was to stop if he spotted anyone coming.

"Oh ye of Slytherin faith."

Starting to roll his eyes in response to that Scorpius froze at the first touch of Albus's fingers as they settled on his shoulders, thumbs moving into his neck in a circular fashion that felt incredible, the sensations building and becoming more pleasurable as those strong, skilled fingers loosened the tense muscles in his neck and then moved lower to work into his shoulders.

Knowing how much better those fingers felt on bare skin was certainly part of the reason Scorpius found himself leaning into the digging fingers, wanting to get closer, though it was the way the Gryffindor leaned forward in turn and started whispering in his ear that had his quiet, mostly bitten off groans becoming unhampered moans. The images the Gryffindor was planting in his mind about the full body massage he could have later, in his bedroom naked…well he was only human, for Merlin's sake.

When Albus started describe going down on him while massaging his inner thighs…well the outside world ceased to exist to the point where Scorpius forgot all about their nearby pets and the possibility that someone could happen by and see him reduced to putty in Potter's hands.

)

Snow watched the bird fly away with a sign of resignation, well used to failure at this point. He was not good at stalking birds, much less catching them. Yue was way, way better than he was. His bestest friend in the whole wide world could catch anything. He was proud to have such a fierce hunter for a friend, though he knew he exasperated Yue sometimes cause he accidentally scared the other feline's prey away sometimes. Yue always forgave him though.

Turning his head to see what Yue was currently looking at Snow was delighted to see that his person had arrived while he'd been stalking his bird. Of course that also meant that maybe he'd seen him fail to catch the bird, but his person didn't look angry so maybe he hadn't. In fact, Snow realized with growing awareness, his person was looking very happy at the moment.

Getting closer to make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him Snow's eyes went wide as his ears picked up sounds that had looking over to Yue in confusion. "Is that how humans purr or is he hurt?" Cause it looked to him like Yue's person was stroking his person, and Snow knew from personal experience that Albus was the best petter ever. But still…

"Those are happy sounds." Yue assured him, doing his best to block out the mating groans assaulting his sensitive ears. There went his appetite, the kneazle thought bitterly to himself, though that was probably for the best with Snow around to scare away everything that was remotely edible for him.

Lifting his head in the hopes of catching the scent of something interesting to take his mind off of things, Yue was pleased to catch the familiar smells he associated with one of his favorite Hogwarts occupants. And while normally he would have warned Albus of the other man's approach Yue decided his person had brought this on himself and instead simply burst into speed as he ran towards Hagrid with Snow following as quickly as he could behind him.

"Well hey there, Yue, out and about with your wee kitten again I see."

In the past couple weeks Yue had gotten used to people referring to Snow like the partial kneazle was his offspring. When too many people crowded in on Snow the fluffball had a habit of running to him and hiding underneath him, sticking his head out between his front legs to observe from there what was going on. All the female students seemed to think that absolutely adorable for some reason and had made almost as many comments on how sweet it was as they had jokes about Profess Malfoy being stuck with a bit of fluff for a pet.

Since he liked Hagrid Yue didn't complain, letting himself be picked up and set on the half giant's shoulder as usual. He loved the view, though it was the chance to tower over everyone else that he liked best.

As he watched his friend picked up Snow as well, cradling the smaller feline in his hands instead of setting him on his other shoulder since Snow wasn't that good at holding on as yet.

Naturally Hagrid's attention soon shifted over to the two men still engaged in their mating dance, Yue feeling a little smug at the surprised curse that passed Hagrid's lips, the sound part horrified, part confused.

"Hello, Hagrid." Albus called over, having apparently preplanned an explanation to cover himself as his lie came out smooth. "I lost a bet."

Nicely done, Yue had to acknowledge, watching Snow's person shift away from Albus, the color on his high cheekbones suggesting that he was embarrassed to have been caught in such a state.

"A bet?" Hagrid repeated, his shoulders relaxing a little, though his tone was slightly suspicious.

"Yup. I thought Snow had a bird in the bag…and Scorpius bet me he'd lose it like always."

"Ah…the wee little one can't catch anything worth a damn." Seeming it buy the excuse Hagrid shook his head and with a friendly finger wave reminded Albus that he'd told him to never make a bet with a Slytherin. And for that matter, what would Albus have got if he'd won? He must have wanted it bad was the underlying message in Hagrid's voice.

"I would have had to actually set aside a valuable hour of my day for a week and spend it playing with that useless powderpuff."

Another good lie, Yue acknowledged, though that didn't surprise him. In his experience Slytherins were very skilled liars.

"I see." Brows bushing up even more than normal Hagrid gave the Potions teacher a hard look as he informed the Slytherin that he should be spending lots of time with Snow, who was a right sweet little thing and deserved better than to be ignored by his person. Persons were very important to kneazles, the bond somethin special. If he wasn't gonna take proper care of the wee fellow he should give Snow to Albus who knew how to raise him up proper.

It was a testament to how rattled Scorpius still was by the massage that he simply glared coolly at the school's game keeper before sarcastically assuring him that he'd keep that in mind.

And as an afterthought he got to his feet and demanded that Hagrid hand his pet over.

Obviously not happy to do so Hagrid reluctantly gave Snow to the Slytherin, Snow just as obviously thrilled to be in Scorpius's hands as he purred and rubbed his sides up against the long fingers of his person.

His person rarely ever wanted to play with him during the day! Yay!


	8. A Little What If

A Little What If

Having been told that he could just walk in after dinner Scorpius didn't bother knocking on Albus's door, letting himself in instead with Snow purring away in his hands like the crazy thing it was. Heading straight for the bedroom Scorpius paused only long enough to set his stupid cat down on the floor near the parlor where Yue was currently hanging out and then kept on going. Thankfully thus far Albus's kneazle was willing to take charge of keeping Snow out of the way, Yue coming over and picking the little puffball up by the back of the neck before turning around and heading for the cat basket the two slept in, which was good since the last thing Scorpius wanted was the two of them coming into the bedroom and watching him and Albus shag. Now that he knew how intelligent they were…it sort of freaked him out a little. Really, he was just glad that he couldn't understand them the way Albus apparently could.

Arriving at his destination Scorpius stepped through the doorway and then stopped, his eyes scanning over the setup with a great deal of surprise and eyebrow rising. That the lighting was dim, giving the room what some might call a romantic atmosphere was puzzling, yes, but it was the odd sheet that had been placed over Albus's bedcovers and the bottles on the bedside table that really surprised him.

"You were only a couple of minutes ahead of me."

"I set it up before dinner." Standing on the left side of the bed wearing loose pyjama bottoms, Albus grinned at him with a definite gleam in his eyes. "I did promise you a full body massage, remember? So strip out of those clothes and stretch out on your stomach. I'm saving your front for last…since I promised you top spot too."

Liking the idea, especially since there was no chance of someone interrupting this time around, Scorpius removed the robes he was wearing, draping it over a chair before continuing to strip down and set aside his clothes until he was completely naked. That done he headed for the bed and stretching out arched his back a little to make sure he had the Gryffindor's full attention, smiling smugly when he saw that he'd succeeded.

And quite sure that he was all Albus was thinking about now Scorpius turned his attention to adjusting the pillow under his head, inhaling deeply the scents he was coming to associate with Albus. That he found the scents comforting and familiar flitted across his mind, but were easily pushed aside when he felt Albus kneel onto the bed and shift over, the Gryffindor's weight on him welcome as well. Especially since Albus had done plenty of whispering in his ear before Hagrid showed up about what he had to look forward to now.

Jerking a little when Albus's fingers spread over his back, the warm wetness of them surprising him, Scorpius was not amused when the Gryffindor told him to relax like he was some spooked animal he was teaching their idiot students to handle without getting bit. But he would let it go since one, the massage might end and two…the massage might end and oh but this felt really, really good.

All but melting into the bed as the man's incredibly strong and talented fingers dug into muscles he hadn't even known he had, Scorpius just enjoyed for a few minutes before he asked where Albus had learned how to do this so well. It wasn't like years of petting animals would have given the Gryffindor this sort of insight into the human body. The most likely answer, which was that Albus made a habit of doing this with other men, had Scorpius tensing up a little to completely undo Albus's work unknotting his shoulders.

"Quit tensing up. My fingers have only so much staying power, thank you very much." Exasperation in his voice Albus started all over again after flexing his fingers to try and delay the eventual kinks in them. "And to answer your question I have a mum who would pay me when I was a kid to massage her shoulders since my dad sucked at it and James never had the patience even with the bribe. Spending hours hunched over a desk isn't good for shoulders and back, especially when you've already abused it playing Quidditch for years."

"Oh."

"And before you say it was mean to charge her she insisted. And I gave her discounts."

Chuckling at the idea, Scorpius closed his eyes with a smile on his face, relaxing completely again which made Albus hum in approval. "So how much would you charge me? I could get used to this."

It was Albus's turn to chuckle now, and then the Gryffindor was leaning forward to place a kiss on the back of Scorpius's neck before shifting over to place his lips against Scorpius's ear, deliberately purring his words. "I'm sure that you and I could work out some sort of arrangement there."

"Indeed." Going quiet again Scorpius stayed that way and just enjoyed it until a random thought amused him. "Oh if your mother could see you know."

"I'd rather my mum never see you naked, thank you very much." In fact he'd rather be the only one seeing the other man naked for the foreseeable future, but Albus wasn't about to say that. Shouldn't really be thinking it either, but crazy thought s were pretty much standard for anyone with Weasley blood. His blood was encoded with a desire to wreak havoc on his life by adding Scorpius to it as much as possible.

Unaware of how their thoughts were aligning Scorpius corrected Albus, something he loved to do, as he dryly explained that he hadn't been referring to the idiot's mother seeing him naked because that wouldn't be cause for amusement in any of their books. What he'd meant was that it was amusing to him to imagine how horrified Ginny Potter would be if she knew her precious baby boy was giving a Malfoy massages, much less shagging him.

"Ah. Yes. That would be an interesting conversation. The excuse of hotness never worked for any of us so your looks wouldn't be enough of an excuse for her." Lips twitching Albus couldn't help but imagine what his mother's reaction would be if he told her the whole story of how he'd ended up sleeping with Draco Malfoy's son. It was actually sort of a funny story, one she might actually find pretty damn hilarious once she got over the initial shocks and scarring mental images.

"You think I'm hot?"

Albus rolled his eyes. "I would have thought, given how much time you must spend in front of a mirror fixing your hair, that you would know the answer to that question without having to ask. Not to mention the fact that you're a Malfoy, your egos are born oversized so it's not like you need that stroked either."

"I look like a Malfoy though."

"And I look like a Potter, but you don't have any problem getting it up either, right?"

That was a valid point. And a disturbing one too, Scorpius mused, since on occasion they had shagged in the morning after accidental sleepovers so he couldn't use the dark as an excuse.

Sure that his point had been made Albus shifted back further down the Slytherin's body than before so that his arse was resting on Scorpius's legs, his hands careful as the brushed against Scorpius's side since heaven help him if he made the mistake of ticking the man by accident. That had not ended well the last and only time he'd done that. And since a person was a lot less likely to react to possible tickling if distracted, Albus picked up the conversation by pointing out that just for the record Scorpius looked a lot less like his father than he himself looked like his own.

Just to be contrary Scorpius decided to argue, though it was hard to do given how good he was feeling at the moment. "How do you figure that? Your muscles aren't nearly as big as you seem to think they are."

"Cute." Albus pinched the white arse in front of him for emphasis, snickering at the yelp and glare that got him. "But seriously, you and your dad have the same coloring but that's about it."

"I look like a Malfoy."

"Yeah, but…I've only got three Malfoys to reference from and your grandfather…well the fact that he's been through two wars and time in Azkaban shows so it's really just you and your dad and…" Albus trailed off, wary of pissing the Slytherin off enough that Scorpius left and maybe didn't come back. The man could be very protective of his family when he was in the mood.

Figuring out why Albus had trailed off Scorpius informed him that he'd be in more trouble if he didn't finish his sentence at this point.

"Fine." A pause. "When I look at you I just see you most of the time. When I look at your dad I see a dilapidated…no…a half finished picture or sculpture. Like you can see what he might have been but he never got to that point so you can't even say what he was meant to be in good or bad ways. No offense."

"That's…one of the most brilliant descriptions of my father that I've ever heard." That a Potter of all people had said it completely floored Scorpius, who was grateful that the Gryffindor couldn't see his face since he didn't even want to think about what kind of expression he might be wearing at the moment.

"Uhm, you're welcome?"

Scorpius smirked a little at that and then announced that it was time for him to roll over. They needed to get back this massage and the shagging that was coming after it. Talking like this was just…not what they should be doing, though he didn't say so because the other man might read something into that and that was the last thing he wanted.

Agreeing with him Albus got off and out of the way before telling Scorpius to go ahead and roll over, smiling like the cat who got the cream at the new view when Scorpius complied.

It was going to be a good night tonight.

)

The next morning Albus awoke for no obvious reason at first, though when he finally opened his very heavy eyelashes it was to see Yue giving him a dirty look. Blinking a few times to bring the kneazle into focus, his brain struggling to engage enough that he wouldn't say or do something that would bring Yue's fury further on his head, Albus covered his mouth to hold in a yawn before asking what was wrong, wondering if maybe Scorpius had said something nasty to the kneazle on the way out. But no, the Slytherin's breath could be felt against his neck while meant that Scorpius had slept over accidentally again. Not all that surprising given the night they'd had but still, the blond was bound to be displeased when he did wake up. Or at least probably, this was the first time he'd woken up before Scorpius so he'd always had to deal with the consequences of said sleepovers after the fact.

Whack

Not appreciating the paw swipe across his cheek, though at least Yue hadn't unsheathed his claws and drawn blood, Albus was smart enough to apologize for getting lost in thought. He hadn't meant to ignore him.

Another feline glare and then Yue was lifting a front paw and pointing it over Albus side, gesturing, Albus was pretty sure, to Scorpius.

"Ah. It wasn't on purpose."

Yue didn't look appeased.

"Does the excuse that I'm only human fly with you at all?"

A slow shaking of his head was Yue's answer to that question, and then the kneazle turned, basically mooned him with a tail swish for added emphasis before he swaggered over to the edge of the bed and jumped down to the floor.

He had to hand it to his kneazle, Albus mused, Yue knew how to make himself clear even when there was a language barrier.

And since he was awake anyway Albus rolled over carefully so that he could observe Scorpius's sleeping face, loving the way the Slytherin's usually perfect hair was sticking out in every direction. It actually made Scorpius look sort of adorable and that wasn't a word one normally applied to a Malfoy.

Thinking back to the first time he remembered seeing Scorpius when they were boys, Albus frowned as something occurred to him that never had before. He'd grown up knowing about the Malfoys, though he'd never met one until school, but he'd pretty much gone to Hogwarts with the mindset that he and Scorpius were pretty much destined not to get along and that he should probably avoid the Slytherin to be as much as possible since he didn't like fighting with people. Scorpius had, in turn, avoided him for the most part as well which begged the question…if they hadn't come to Hogwarts expecting not to like each other, would they have been able to get along at the very least? Been cordial enough to actually greet each other instead of always looking the other way? Loaning each other a quill or some ink if they'd noticed the other needed some. Would he have thought Malfoy cute and then hot if he'd really looked at Scorpius back then and vice versa?

Troubling thoughts to be had, for sure, Albus mused as he reached out to run a finger along Scorpius's knife-edge cheekbone.

Of course Scorpius personality would have been a serious problem too, especially since the blond had only gotten worse with age. While they might have been able to become friends when they'd been younger if circumstances had been different…presently it was probably impossible.

Wasn't it?

Jerking in surprise when suddenly Scorpius's eyes were open and looking into his, Albus said the first thing that came to mind.

"How do you wake up like that?!"

"Why are you staring at me?"

"Analyzing the past." Albus's lips curved a little. "So hypothetically, if we'd come here as regular students, last names meaning nothing and no connections whatsoever…do you think you'd have hit on me? Or even that we might have just been friends?"

Scorpius took a moment to think about it and then he answered. "Possibly to the first, no to the second."

"Awww, really? I'm a great friend, you know. I'd have been a great friend with benefits." To prove it Albus ignored the factor of morning breath and slid his fingers into Scorpius's hair, fisting them in the longish strands before cupping the back of the blond's head to pull him in for a closed mouth kiss.

Scorpius allowed it, though as soon as Albus had pulled away the Slytherin lifted a hand to flick him in the forehead. "No sleepovers."

"Hey, this is my bed, Mr. Flicker." Albus tried to return the favor but Scorpius's hand got in the way, blocking his forehead from attack. "No fair."

"You just tried to flick me!"

"You flicked me!" And not about to stand for it Albus tackled the other man, which led to them falling off said bed but Albus didn't let that stop him. He was too busy tickling the hell out the cursing Slytherin who was trying and failing to take a swing at him because this was going to be fun.

)

Reacting to the sound of his person in distress, he had to save him, Snow forgot all about the cat toy he'd been playing with and started running for the door, heart racing as he imagined all sorts of terribly things that would be bad enough to hurt someone as strong and powerful as his person. He would bite, claw and say as many mean things about whatever was hurting his person as he could. He wasn't Yue but he could-YUE!

All but rolling head over tail, he stopped so fast, Snow's head whipped around to look in Yue's direction, completely flabbergasted to see that the kneazle was still calmly cleaning a paw like there wasn't anything amiss.

"YUE! We have to save my person!"

A little surprised, the little puffball had a bigger set of lungs than he'd imagined, Yue shook his head and then very calmly informed Snow that he had nothing to worry about. His person was just fine and he should ignore the noises from the bedroom. A speech that he'd given the little runt the night before when all the noise their people had made during their matings had woken Snow up and had in turn caused Snow to wake him up to ask him what the noises were.

If he weren't so sick of not sleeping in his own bed Yue would have left the room hours ago.

"But these aren't sort of happy sounds like before! Those are his angry voices! Well except for the laughing noises, but he doesn't sound happy after them."

"He will soon enough." Yue had complete faith in his person's ability to own Malfoy if it came to that. Albus was stronger, bigger, and more cunning than anyone ever gave his person credit for. He liked to think that he'd rubbed off on the man during the course of their partnership.

"Well I'm going to make sure he's okay. Not that I don't trust you, because I do, but…he's my person."

And so saying Snow continued on his way, running as fast as his little legs could carry him with his ears perked to catch every sound he was straining to hear. And yes, the closer he got to the bedroom door the more the sounds he heard were less mad, but he didn't relax until he'd managed to wiggling his body through the not quite closed door and see for himself that no, some monster wasn't trying to hurt his most precious person.

His person was completely fine, he was just playing a weird game with Yue's person that seemed to involving a lot of rolling around and that weird thing they did with their mouths sometimes that made them do their weird version of a purr.

Satisfied that all was well, and happy that the two were getting along, Snow smiled as much as he was able and then headed back out to tell Yue that everything was okay, just like the older feline had said it would be.

Yue was the smartest kneazle in the world, Snow was sure of it. He was always right.


	9. Green Eyed Boy

Green Eyed Boy

Scorpius spent most of the day in silent contemplation, his students desperately grateful that whatever had put the seemingly permanent scowl on their potion teacher's face was so distracting that the evil Slytherin didn't even think to take his mood out on them. In fact, they would have said that their lessons with him were the most peaceful they had ever been if said students hadn't had to worry that he might snap out of his daze at any moment and be twice as bad upon realizing that he hadn't been tormenting them as per usual, and needed to make up for that oversight.

But luckily for his students, it wasn't until about two in the afternoon that Scorpius finally became aware that it was the afternoon already, when he hardly remembered leaving his rooms to go for breakfast. This of course made him that much angrier, but thankfully he wasn't in class so there was no one around for him to vent his frustrations on.

To his way of thinking, the daze he's apparently been in just highlighted the fact that he really needed to stop shagging Potter.

The flicking, and the tickling, and the whole weird conversation about whether or not they'd have dated or been friends years ago, if not for their last names and the animosities between their families that went with that, had been setting off alarms in his head even before he'd wasted the day so completely. They were not behaving like…well he'd never had a flicking contest or been tickled by someone he was sleeping with. Generally he dated men with more sense than that, but playing with each other that way had no place in his present arrangement with Potter. It denoted a level of intimacy that they shouldn't -couldn't have.

Knowing the Gryffindor the way he did Scorpius knew there was no point in trying to tell Potter that he couldn't flick or tickle him…or cuddle him when they accidentally slept together, or stroke his back and hair after sex. Or really any of the other things the idiot did that he shouldn't do, because it muddied the waters too much. No, if he even tried to tell Albus -Potter that he couldn't do those things anymore the literal and figurative pain in his arse would do them just to piss him off.

So tonight would be the last night, Scorpius told himself sternly, steely determination in his grey eyes. One last time wouldn't hurt, and then afterwards he'd tell the other man that he was done with him and that would be that.

Potter would try to talk him out of it, he was spectacular in bed after all and the Gryffindor would be loathed to lose such a skilled sexual partner, but that was Albus's problem, not his. Unlike the green eyed menace, he would have no problem finding someone else. Sure he would miss the convenience of having the other man right across the hallway, but he'd just have to make his weekend trips into London count so to speak.

Confident in his plan and his ability to carry it out, Scorpius left his work area in a much better frame of mind then when he'd entered it. Or he was, right up until the point where he was passed by a couple of giggling fourth year girls. The two, who were both doing abysmally in his class, were whispering very loudly about the fact that they couldn't wait to tell their other friends that not only was Professor Potter dating the Cannons' Chaser Quinn Howl, but they'd seen the two snogging!

Scorpius wasn't a big Quidditch fan, he hadn't so much as tried out for the Slytherin team when he was a student, but the Slytherin did know exactly who Howl was. The man had been a year ahead of them, had played for the Gryffindors, and had dated Potter for a fair chunk of their sixth year. According to school gossip it had been a relatively amicable split, and the two had been linked romantically a time or two since in the Daily Prophet and other rags over the years.

But it wasn't jealousy that had red hot rage erupting in Scorpius's veins, he told himself, a decidedly green haze fogging over his eyes. It was the fact that he and Potter had had a deal, dammit. They'd both agreed that neither of them would move on to someone else without telling the other first. It was just good manners. It was what they'd AGREED to.

Oh he was going to make Potter sorry for this. So sorry for this.

Fury lengthening his strides, and feeling like a well-honed blade that had been thrown into the air with a certain lying, cheating Gryffindor as his target, Scorpius headed in the most logical direction to get to the door that would lead outside where he'd imagine-

Coming towards him was the man Potter had been cheating on him with, the Quidditch player's stride easy, though the look on the man's face didn't suggest that he'd just spent the last few minutes snogging with Potter. Actually, this particular Gryffindor looked rather…disappointed?

"Malfoy."

"Howl. What brings you to Hogwarts? Taken so many blows to the head that you need to re-enroll?"

Quinn's lips twitched, shrugging the insult with ease. "Someone hasn't changed. Can't say I've missed you much, either. And no, I'm not enrolling, you'd fail me along with most of the Gryffindors here I'd imagine. I just came by to visit Al, and see if he wanted to go out to dinner this weekend. I'm on my way out."

Scorpius was dripping with sarcasm. "Romantic dinner for two?"

"Apparently not. Bye."

Giving Scorpius a cocky salute, he wasn't going to hang around to chat, Howl walked around him and then continued down the hallway, Scorpius turning around to watch him go as he tried to figure out what the hell the Gryffindor had meant by that. Was he dating Albus or wasn't he? That had been the tone of a bloke who'd just been shot down, but those giggling idiots he'd passed earlier had said the two were snogging…

What the hell?!

)

He'd been in a somewhat contemplative mood all day, but at the moment Albus figured it was a good idea to take a seat on one of the school benches so that he didn't walk into a wall or risk stepping off into thin air because the stairs weren't where he thought they were. That would certainly take his mind off a certain Slytherin, Albus acknowledged with a self-deprecating smirk, but it wouldn't do him much good in the long run, especially if he gave himself a concussion or broke something. So he would do the logical thing and sit his fine arse down until he could sort through his visit with Quinn and what he may or may not have learned from the man's visit.

Over the years they'd become each other's fallback for lack of a better word, not really friends with benefits, but someone who, if they weren't seeing someone, would be willing to tumble into bed with him for a bit of fun, no harm done come morning. Hmm, maybe friends with benefits did apply…huh. Anyway, not important. What was important was that when Quinn had come up behind him, and twirled him around for a surprise kiss, his first thought was NO.

What the hell?

Rubbing his hands over his hair in a show of agitation, Albus couldn't believe that that had been his instinctual reaction, he'd actually had to restrain himself from punching the other man because his brain had said was the natural response to someone thinking they could make a cheater out of him. Which one, wasn't fair since it wasn't like Quinn had had any idea he was seeing someone, and two, Quinn was a really, really good snogger, so normally that would have been a solid distraction for at least the first bit before he had his head on straight enough to realize that he should good naturedly be pushing him away. So it was telling, disturbingly so, how quickly he'd a little too forcefully pushed Quinn away and stated that he was seeing someone else.

He and Malfoy weren't even seeing each other, though yeah, they were sure as hell seeing a lot more of each other than they ever had given how quickly clothes tended to be shed these days around each other. But they weren't dating, not even close, so saying he was seeing someone, giving the impression that it was serious in the way he'd shut Quinn down so quickly and meaning it, made no sense unless he was in over his head where Scorpius Malfoy was concerned and was only just realizing it.

When Quinn had asked who he was involved with, he'd said the relationship was still new, and the other guy wasn't ready to go public about it given the attention they'd get since the gossip rags did like to jump on anyone involved with the Potter family. Quinn's response to that had been raised eyebrows and a curious look as he'd noted that Albus had fallen for the guy pretty fast then, which was unusual for him. Which was true, he wasn't the type to jump into relationships the way his siblings did, but the way Quinn had looked at him had made it clear that his friend thought he and Scorpius were serious about each other. And Quinn knew him really well after all this time.

Now Quinn could be wrong, he'd been very vague on the details and that might have made the other Gryffindor read more into his words than was actually there…but assuming he wasn't that meant that he really needed to get his head on straight when it came to Malfoy.

Scorpius was unquestionably different from anyone Albus had been involved with, not only because he normally at least bought a bloke he was interested in dinner first, but mainly the other man's personality was the complete opposite of what he normally looked for in a partner. Malfoy was hot and sexy though, and that could go a long way to glossing over someone's less desirable traits when one wasn't thinking with his brain. Though in Malfoy's case Albus would argue that no, the Slytherin wasn't so hot that he couldn't see what a ginormous arse the blond was on a regular basis. When it came to the sex too, he wouldn't argue that it was scorching hot, but still…losing his head over someone based on really good sex wasn't something he did either anymore. If he did he'd still be dating that git Jasper, who'd had the stamina and sex drive of a sodding rabbit, but had bored his brains out half the time outside of bed.

So yeah…was he actually interested in pursuing Scorpius romantically? Like trying to have a real relationship and all that jazz?

He could not see things ending well for him if his brain really was that stupid.

Maybe it was just the thought of the challenge that had him acting weird, Albus told himself, getting to his feet since he couldn't sit still anymore now. On some level he knew that bagging Scorpius Malfoy would be a feat that would be almost as fraught with peril as his father's repeated face offs with various Death Eaters. Not quite as bad, since Scorpius wouldn't actually try to kill him, but the chance for permanent injury would definitely be there.

Damn, he hoped he wasn't experiencing an early midlife crisis. Men did stupid things during a midlife crisis according to all the women of his acquaintance. His father really hadn't, but his mum always said that that was because he'd done so many stupid things before he was twenty that the Fates had cut them both a break there.

What he should do was sleep on the idea, Albus decided, sleeping not only being one of his favorite things to do, but would also mean that hopefully whatever brain cells had infected his stupid mind with the thought that he should maybe try to worm his way into Scorpius affections might simultaneously combust or come up with something far more reasonable as a future goal for him. Like trying to figure out Lily Logic. That was way more doable than getting Scorpius to go out with him.

Smirking at the idea of what any member of his family would say if he said that he thought understanding the thought processes of his sister was doable, Albus shook his head and then headed in the most direct route to his rooms so that he could have that nap until it was time to get up and head to the Great Hall for supper.

Plus, if nothing else, at least he wouldn't have to run in to Scorpius until then. That alone made it a genius level plan really, since Albus didn't trust his brain not to make him blurt out or do something really stupid if he did see the other man. Today, at least, that was what he was doing around the Slytherin for some reason. Like the tickling and the flicking thing. What the hell had he been thinking with that? At least the cuddling he kept doing could be blamed on both his nature and the fact that Scorpius gave off a surprising amount of heat despite his often cold disposition.

Cursing under his breath, hadn't he spent enough time fretting over that stuff like a twit earlier, Albus resolutely refused to go down that road. Instead he would spend the whole walk back to his place mentally reviewing all the threats Scorpius had made against his person over the years.

It would seem that he needed the reminder.

)

Scorpius hadn't been in the best of moods to begin with, so after looking around in the most logical places Potter might be given the time of day, as well as asking Longbottom and Hagrid where the git was, the Slytherin arrived at the other man's door with the thought that if the Gryffindor wasn't inside he was going to jinx him the next time he laid eyes on him. The fact that it wouldn't surprise him one little bit to learn that either or both of Potter's family friends knew where the current pain in his arse was didn't improve his mood any, and jinxing all of them sounded like a damn good idea in his books. Or at least in the case of Potter and Longbottom, since Hagrid's giant's blood gave the groundskeeper built in protection so to speak, unfortunately.

Undoing the lock on Albus's door easily enough Scorpius let himself in, not surprised when he hadn't reached the end of the short hallway before Yue appeared, the feline's fur standing up a little and its body braced to defend. The fact that his own kneazle came trotting into view too, looking about as dangerous as a ray of purring sunshine, was just depressing.

Heaving the sigh of a man with a great weight on his shoulders, Scorpius knelt down a little when Snow came running over to him, giving the stupid thing a couple pats on its head so that it wouldn't annoy him for more before straightening up and addressing Yue, who was watching him through narrow eyes from the mouth of the hallway still.

"Is he here?"

A moment to consider, and then Yue tilted his head in a way that suggested he wanted to know more before answering the question.

"I'm not here to maim or kill him. I just have a couple of questions. You have my word." He'd maim the Gryffindor later, when there was no witnesses around if need be.

The kneazle gave him a look that said Yue didn't trust him as far as he could throw him. But then he nodded once and turning around headed in the direction of the bedroom, Scorpius taking that to mean that he should follow.

When Yue came to a stop in front of the bedroom door Scorpius raised an eyebrow, but guessed that Albus just have gotten his shirt or trousers dirty and had come in to get changed. Though why his conversation with the man's pet hadn't alerted Albus to his presence, especially since the door was open a little, made no sense to him unless the idiot was trying to lure him in for a quick shag before supper.

Annoyed that he rather liked the idea of that, his body perking up with interest, Scorpius reminded both his mind and all the rest of his parts that they were here for something else entirely.

Opening the door wider and stepping inside once Yue was out of the way, Scorpius took one look and called Albus a number of uncomplimentary things under his breath.

Shaking his head, what was Potter, five?, Scorpius moved farther into the darkened room, the thick curtains having been closed tightly enough that the sun couldn't get through them. The large lump under the covers made the other man's location obvious, and the closer he got the easier it was for Scorpius to make out the shape of Albus, the rhythm of the Gryffindor's breathing making it clear that he was out for the count.

Taking a seat on the side of the bed Scorpius twisted around to turn on the bedside table lamp before turning his attention back to poking Albus's back, which was facing him. And when that didn't work he tried skewering his finger into the hard muscle of the other man's shoulder, yanking down enough of the blanket to insure that the idiot felt it.

Much grumbling and blanket adjusting was all the reaction he got, Albus just burrowing under his covers that much more.

Trying to yank the covers right off of Albus didn't work either, the man's grip on them death grip tight.

"Really, seriously? You are five."

And so saying Scorpius punched Albus in the shoulder, though not really hard since there was a chance that the Gryffindor would hit him back…and possibly quite a bit harder since the man did have more muscle tone than he did.

That got a reaction, Albus rolling over onto his other side, a single green eye opening to look at him before closing again, the Gryffindor rolling back into his earlier position.

"Unless you want sex, I'm sleeping."

"Do you know what time it is?"

"Go away."

"Or what?" Scorpius challenged, crossing his arms in front of him belligerently.

"You sure you want to find out?" Was Albus's response, something about the man's tone making Scorpius think that maybe he didn't…but still...

"You're such a child."

In the universal sign of disrespect, Albus raised one hand, his middle finger making his feelings on the matter clear. "Bite me."


	10. He Bit Me

He Bit Me

Grumbling a little under his breath, and really who could blame him, Albus snuggled deeper under his covers, having hopefully made it quite clear to the Slytherin that he needed to sod off for the time being so that he could continue his lovely nap. Interrupt him for no good reason, and calling him five on top of that, the jackarse. See if he got out of bed anytime soon now. And okay, as he wasn't unconscious just yet there was a small voice pointing out that giving Scorpius the finger and telling the git to bite him might incite the blond to try and push him off his own bed or curse him…but Albus figured the man didn't have the muscle for the first anyway. As for the second…well Yue would bite Malfoy for him so that was something -

Cursing when his covers were yanked hard, taking with them his warmth, Albus's eyes snapped open just as he felt the brush of Scorpius's hair against his jaw as Malfoy BIT him, the blond's teeth digging in good and hard at the spot where his shoulder and neck met on the right side.

Yelping, Albus vaguely heard Scorpius ask him if he was happy now, too busy clutching a hand over the wound to be a hundred percent sure about that. But the Slytherin was smirking at him and…

Happy? Was he happy now?! The little SHITE!

Not even thinking about the price he'd undoubtedly be made to pay later, Albus jerked his wand out from under his pillow, rolled over in one smooth move, and pointing said wand at the Slytherin smiled as ropes appeared out of nowhere to very firmly secure Scorpius's arms to his sides.

"POTTER!"

"Malfoy."

Pushing aside his covers completely, thus revealing the fact that he'd removed his clothes before getting into bed earlier, Albus reached over and had a cursing and struggling Scorpius on his back in seconds, Albus climbing on top of him so that Scorpius was good and stuck where he wanted him.

Keeping his wand firmly in one hand just in case, Albus pulled the covers back over them with the other since it was a little cool in the room and he wanted to be warm while he and Scorpius had their little discussion about why one did NOT interrupt his naps unless there was a damn good reason to. Though he'd wait until the Slytherin was done cursing him to hell and back, since a tired out Malfoy was a much easier one to handle. Especially when he was tied up, Albus mentally added wickedly.

Thankfully it didn't take Scorpius long to realize that yelling at Albus wasn't getting him anywhere, the other man's temper and common sense kicking in enough that finally Scorpius took a deep breath and in a much calmer tone of voice ordered him to untie him. Now.

"And why would I do that? Especially since you just made it very clear that you like it rougher than you've been letting on." Albus deliberately purred the words, loving the confusion that crossed Scorpius's face. "Biting me, Malfoy. I didn't know you liked it rough. You should have told me, I'd have tied you up sooner."

It was small of him, Albus knew, but he was a little amused to watch what little color Scorpius's rage had given him faded away, the licking his top lip Albus threw in for added effect making the Slytherin go as still as stone beneath him in shock.

And as lovely as the git's response was Albus was far from done, the Gryffindor leaning in close to place his lips against the shell of Scorpius's ear. "So just how rough do you want it, exactly? Because right now I'm thinking I'd very much enjoy rolling you over and fucking that pretty, pale arse of yours until you're screaming loud enough to put a banshee to shame. What do you think?"

Lifting his head to find out, Albus had to work hard not to burst out laughing over the fact that his lover currently resembled a landed trout gasping for air.

"You wouldn't do that." Scorpius's voice was firm with conviction, though there was just a hint of wariness in his eyes that suggested he was starting to sense that he was being played here and didn't like that thought one little bit. "You know that no means no."

"Of course it does; what else would it mean?" Albus gave the Slytherin his most innocent look. "But you wouldn't be saying no, now would you? Unless I stopped. You love when I fuck you."

"I do not!"

"A trip into a Pensieve would prove otherwise." Evil grin now, though Albus laced his voice with false sympathy as he stroked Scorpius's cheekbone with his free hand. "But you're in a very bad mood today, aren't you? Students giving you trouble again?"

A wicked thought entering his head Albus went with it, embracing his Slytherin side so to speak as he leaned in to whisper in Scorpius's ear again.

"I'd have given you fits if you'd been my Potions teacher, wouldn't I? No real aptitude for it all, that was me. But you wouldn't have failed me, would you, Professor Malfoy? No, I'd have been able to convince you that I was the best student you ever had."

"And how would you have done that, Mr. Cause Explosions that I remember very well from being in Potions class with you?" Scorpius's voice rang with sarcasm now.

"By being willing to do whatever you wanted me to to get a good grade." Albus swiped his tongue up the side of Scorpius's sensitive neck for emphasis. "You could have me across your desk, or mine, and I'd have been more than willing to do some extra credit work to make sure all the worries of the day were just…blown from your mind, leaving you relaxed and far more inclined to appreciate my ability to blow you away."

The husky way Scorpius said his last name betrayed the man's growing interest in what he was suggesting, egging Albus on that much more.

"Yes, Professor?"

"You're…" Words escaped Scorpius for the moment, the man breathing out a sound of annoyance.

"Anything you want, Professor, you should know that." A nip to Scorpius's ear. "And if I don't follow your directions to the letter, well then you can punish me to your little Slytherin heart's content."

"My little heart's content, hmm?"

"Yup."

"Then untie me and I will."

Well aware that he could possibly be taking his life into his hands if he did that while Scorpius was conscious, Albus also knew that he had to do it eventually since they did only have about an hour before they had to be at the Great Hall at this point. But his mum hadn't raised no fool either, so Albus maneuvered his hand into the pocket Scorpius kept his wand in, and pulling the piece of wood out Albus tossed it onto a nearby chair before doing the same with his own wand. That done he settled down so that they were looking into each other's faces as he made the ropes disappear with a quick word.

And just that quickly Albus found himself on his back with a very riled up Slytherin physically pinning his arms above his head, though he could have broken free easily enough. Curiosity made him stay though, watching with some fascination as Scorpius's chest literally heaved with the exertion from the control he was exercising at the moment.

"I'm going to fuck your brains out."

Nodding in reaction to Scorpius's growled statement Albus didn't struggle, having been under the man enough that he wasn't worried his arse couldn't handle a little roughness.

"And when I'm done with you you're the one who's going to have screamed like a banshee…as well as unable to sit your pretty arse down on anything for quite a while."

Okay, that last part was a little worrisome, but Albus was nothing if not a risk taker when he thought the benefits outweighed the chance of him regretting whatever stupid idea he'd gotten into his head. So rather than argue Albus deliberately rubbed his lower half up against Scorpius's, daring the Slytherin to follow through on his threat.

"Whatever you say, Professor."

)

Yue was getting more than a little tired of having to be the one to make sure that Snow's mind stayed as snowy white as possible when it came to their persons and what the two got up to in the bedroom. But since he hated the idea of having to explain things to Snow, the little fluffball's questions were sure to be mortifying or make him want to pull his fur out, Yue recognized he was stuck until their persons either permanently parted ways or Snow was old enough to be interested in mating and would get his understanding of the whole process that way.

That Yue wasn't sure which would come first anymore was the big surprise of the year, and that worried the kneazle quite a bit as he and Snow headed towards his place. He hadn't thought his person and Malfoy would still be mating often at this point, and they seemed to be…shifting to better fit each other, and that was…troubling to say the least.

Not that his person couldn't do worse, he certainly could like that git Jasper, but still…this was a case where the two would end up mad for each other or hating each other with a passion that would be more explosive than a Longbottom in a Potions class.

"So what are we going to do if they're still playing?" Snow asked Yue, looking up at him with his usual hero worship. He didn't know why they always had to leave places when their persons played together, but he trusted Yue when he said it was what they had to do.

If the two were still mating he was going to be most displeased, Yue thought, but didn't say. "They have to be going to supper soon, so I'll interrupt them if necessary."

"And then we can have supper too, right?"

"Yes."

"Yay!"

Shaking his head a little, Yue sighed and then walked through his front door with Snow following after him. He couldn't smell bloodshed, and he didn't hear any yelling or any noise at all which was reassuring. Maybe they'd both worn each other out and he'd just have to wake them up. Not the most appealing prospect, Albus could be very hard to rouse, but if he could wake the Slytherin first he'd have help getting the other man up hopefully. Unless Malfoy had already left, though Yue's nose was pretty sure that wasn't the case.

Coming to a stop at the open doorway that would lead into the bedroom Yue cocked his ears, listening intently for confirmation about the two still forms he could see on the bed. "They're asleep. I'll have to wake them up."

"Can I help?" Snow's eyes went big with excitement. "Can I? Can I, please?"

Yue had serious doubts that Snow could accomplish such a task, but Malfoy would possibly be less grumpy if woken up by his own pet, or at least less likely to throw Snow across the room in a fit of temper since the fluffball was a lot more breakable than he was.

"I suppose." Lowering his head Yue picked Snow up by the back of the neck and then carrying the fluffy feline headed towards the bed, using his patent system to get up onto the covers with ease despite his puffy burden. Still carrying Snow in his mouth Yue climbed up Albus's quilt covered leg until he was standing on the man's hip, setting Snow down then before surveying the scene in front of him with growing disbelief.

All the times he'd come in to find Albus cuddling Malfoy had never fazed him, Yue knew his person was a cuddler and that was simply his nature, which met the Slytherin cuddling didn't necessarily indicate any particular affection for the recipient of said cuddling. But today Malfoy was cuddling Albus against him, and both were wearing happy expressions that had cold chills running down the kneazle's spine.

"Oh sod it all. This is bad."

"Something's bad?" Snow wanted to know, thinking that their persons looked really cute all snuggled together in Albus's bed. He loved to cuddle with Yue, it always made him really happy.

"I can see what's happening."

"What?"

"And they don't have a clue."

"Who?"

"They'll fall in love, and here's the bottom line, my peaceful life is through." And so stating Yue hung his head, sure that he was absolutely doomed now.

Feeling very confused, not to mention he was obviously missing something which he really hated, Snow leaned his fluffy body against Yue in sympathy for whatever was making his bestest friend in the whole world so sad. "Don't worry, Yue. It's okay, whatever's wrong. You'll always have me to make you feel better."

Looking towards the ceiling Yue prayed for strength, and finding a little suggested that Snow wake his person up.

Happy to help Snow started to climb higher up Albus's back, the cat slipping and tumbling down the man's back to get stuck in the crevice made by Albus's back and Malfoy's chest.

Why Merlin, why, Yue asked the ceiling again, his ears easily picking up Snow's calls for help.

Like the weight of the Wizarding World rested on his thin shoulders Yue very nimbly walked his way up the length of Albus's body until he reached his person's neck, the kneazle knowing the man well enough to know that he wouldn't wake up even if he draped himself on Albus's neck, which was what Yue did so that he could easily bat at Malfoy's nose with his paw without risking a fall of his own.

Unlike his person Malfoy proved to be a very light sleeper, though the fact that Slytherin didn't strike him as the napping type probably meant Malfoy wouldn't normally be sleeping at this hour either. Either way Yue appreciated the small mercy of the man's grey eyes opening fairly quickly, focusing on him immediately with a look that said he didn't appreciate being woken up by way of nose swatting.

Being an observant man too Malfoy's gaze quickly lowered and then the hand that had been resting against Albus's stomach slid away and down, retrieving Snow who purred his thanks loudly while the Slytherin just shook his head, something Yue got completely.

And then Malfoy was rolling over to check the time, cursing when he saw what it was.

Throwing aside the covers Malfoy was out from under the covers in a flash, poor little Snow still in the other man's hand like a fluffy ball the Slytherin had forgotten to throw. Thankfully the wizard was mostly still dressed, though some adjusting, zipping, and belt buckling needed to be done before the Slytherin picked up something else, his wand, from a chair and then hurried out of the room without even bothering to look at Albus, much less help Yue wake him up.

Not appreciating that Yue scowled in the direction of the now closed door, which Malfoy had closed softly instead of at least slamming it. Not that that would have necessarily woken Albus up either, but it would have been worth a shot at least.

Damn

)

Tossing Snow onto his bed once he was in a position to do so, Scorpius left the furball there and hurried into the bathroom, stripping as he went because he could smell the sex and Potter on his skin and he sure as hell wasn't going to the Great Hall knowing that. Leaping into the shower, he was not going to be late if he could help it, Scorpius quickly ran soap over his skin while trying and failing to block out the memories of the last hour from his immediate thoughts.

Fuck, how could he have lost his control like that? He'd been completely mindless, like a dumb animal in heat, only thinking about mounting his mate and claiming that arse as his own.

He hadn't even taken his clothes off first, which was why Scorpius left them lying on the floor and instead changed into fresh clothes after his shower. He didn't even bother to pick up the dirty ones, which was completely out of character, but then again he didn't even want to acknowledge the articles of clothing, so it made some sense in his mind at the moment.

The fact that he'd have to face Potter in the Great Hall in a matter of minutes didn't help either, Scorpius wincing as he imagined it. It wasn't going to be easy not to look in the other man's direction, especially since he couldn't imagine that the Gryffindor would be up to sitting down easy right about now. He'd never been so inconsiderate before, and though he had used lube he sure as hell hadn't taken the time he normally would have to make sure that Albus could handle being used roughly.

What the hell was it about Albus Potter that messed with his head so completely? To the point where he lost his head and just-let this side of his nature he hadn't even known existed take over.

And what the fuck had been up with him finding it arousing to hear Potter call him Professor Malfoy?!

Wanting to tear his hair out, but not doing so since losing his hair was high on his biggest worries list, Scorpius only finger combed the wet strands into place, checked to make sure that he was presentable, and then hauled arse out of his rooms and headed down the hallway towards the Great Hall, praying that he would be on time.

Running when it was possible and no one was around to see him, Scorpius managed to get in and take his seat just in time, the Slytherin not surprised to see that Albus hadn't arrived before him. For one thing the Gryffindor had still been unconscious when he'd left, and for another the other man wouldn't have been up to rushing around like a chicken with its head cut off the way he had. Plus it wasn't like Potter was the type to feel really bad about being late for something, he'd just apologize all cute and boyishly and everyone would forgive him because he was adorable and a Potter.

Ugh…had he just thought that Albus-Potter was cute and adorable?

There went his appetite completely.


	11. He Schooled You

He Schooled You

Scorpius refused to feel any more guilt or worry about Albus, and for the most part succeeded until they'd all been eating for close to twenty minutes and still no Potter. It was then that he let himself see that he wasn't the only one aware that someone was missing, a few students and some of the other teachers shooting the Gryffindor's empty seat questioning looks. And even though Scorpius knew that there was no way any of them could know he was responsible for Potter's absence, Scorpius couldn't shake the feeling that they did know and were silently accusing him. He wasn't being completely paranoid either, some were sending him suspicious looks. They were probably thinking that perhaps he'd taken his earlier bad mood out on the missing professor, which was actually the truth though they were wrong in imagining Albus dead or severely injured somewhere, the Gryffindor's body waiting to be discovered by some unlucky student who would end up scarred for life. That he might have channeled his rage by fucking the other man's brains out wouldn't occur to them, thankfully. He'd much rather they think he'd bloodied the Gryffindor.

And then Hagrid and Longbottom had to start discussing Albus's absence, and that just made it that much worse as Scorpius found what little appetite he'd had deserting him. The older men didn't seem too worried at the moment, thankfully. They both seemed to be aware of their fellow Gryffindor loved to take naps and were currently hypothesizing that he might have simply slept through his alarm. It certainly wouldn't be the first time.

But both sent him suspicious looks too, Scorpius glaring back at them.

It was Longbottom who asked if he'd seen Albus after classes had ended, Scorpius scowling as he jerked his head in the negative since he wasn't about to risk saying more. What if his face gave something away, especially since he was really starting to feel guilty and couldn't help but wonder if maybe he should cut out early and drop by to check on the Gryffindor, just in case.

That he didn't want to care enough to feel obligated just made the Slytherin's emotions that much volatile too, and any outburst on his part would not end well for him. Of that he was certain.

Longbottom and Hagrid discussing whether they should drop in to check on Albus after dinner didn't help his mood either, Scorpius torn between relief that he wouldn't have to do that and horror at the thought of what they would find if they were to let themselves into Albus's rooms. If the Gryffindor was still unconscious, and Scorpius didn't remember if the covers had been covering the other man and there were bound to be some bruises, they'd both been rough and Potter would be naked and -

"Why hello, Yue. Got a message there for me?"

Head moving so fast that it was a wonder he didn't snap his neck, Scorpius saw Hagrid feed Yue a piece of chicken before opening a folded piece of parchment that the kneazle had apparently brought the half giant. From Albus?

A chuckle and shake of his great head, then Hagrid was telling Longbottom that they'd been right, Al had slept in and was just fine. The boy was going to skip supper, he had snacks in his room apparently, but he hadn't wanted them to worry. He'd see them at breakfast.

Shaking his own head Longbottom commented dryly that Al must have been a cat in another life, to love sleeping so much.

Yue made an annoyed sound in response to that, the Herbology teacher apologizing to the kneazle who sniffed disdainfully as he walked across the table, picked up a chicken leg between his teeth, and then nimbly leapt off the table to land off the floor, heading off to eat it in peace no doubt.

Well hell…now what was he supposed to think?

Was it just a case that he'd actually slept in so late that Potter had decided that there was no point in interrupting everyone's meal, or was he actually not capable of getting out of bed and coming to supper? Everyone knew that members of the Gryffindor's family regularly snitched food from the Hogwarts' kitchen, so was Potter intending to just ask an elf to bring him something? Was Potter just too mad at him to want to sit at the same table as him or was he…but surely Yue would have attempted to maim him if the kneazle thought he'd done Albus any harm and missing one bloody meal wouldn't do the Gryffindor any harm. The man ate enough for two people often enough as it was.

Oh fuck a duck…he was going to have to check in on the prat after supper, dammit.

)

Studying the chess board while he used his strawberry twizzler to suck up coca cola, Albus was sad at the sounds coming from the can that indicated he'd almost drank the whole thing. Damn. He was all comfortable at the moment, stretched out on his side in his pajamas, and the thought of leaving the bed to get another can didn't appeal to him overly. But he also wanted more…decisions, decisions.

Biting off a piece of the licorice, he still had half a bag beside him to replace it with, Albus sighed and then ordered his knight to get into position to protect his queen. Not only was he out of coke but he was probably about to lose the match, and few things were more demoralizing than losing a chess game to his kneazle.

Not that Yue wasn't terrible smart and didn't beat him often, he did, but this was just a humiliating defeat, and the way his kneazle kept smirking at him and swinging his tail made Albus think the feline was going to be rubbing this match in his face for days to come.

"You can quit looking so bloody smug, you know. I wouldn't be losing so badly if Scorpius had left me some brains to think with."

The look he got in return made it clear that Yue did not appreciate the fact that Albus had reminded them both that the Gryffindor and Scorpius had been shagging in the bed they were currently occupying a couple of hours ago.

Nevermind that he'd changed the sheets before they'd started the match, Albus thought as he watched Yue prod his king into place, the chess piece dispatching Albus's knight without remorse. You'd think that thoughtfulness would have earned him some points with the kneazle but no, alas, it had not.

"You know, Yue, I'm starting to think that it's the personality traits you and Malfoy share that's making this whole thing so bloody difficult. I've built up too much of a tolerance for stubborn, arrogant, know-it-alls."

Rather than look insulted Yue just smirked at him while he gestured towards the board with one paw, reminding Albus that it was his turn.

"I should have got a dog."

The way Yue stuck his nose in the air made it clear he wasn't even going to dignify that with a response.

Not that his kneazle didn't get his revenge by bloodlessly destroying him on the chess board, thoroughly enough that as soon as the match was over Albus asked for another, knowing that he wouldn't sleep easy if he didn't regain some of his chess cred back. He'd played horribly, and needed to redeem himself.

Thankfully Yue was in the mood to crush him again, the kneazle regally nodding in agreement of another match.

That being the case Albus got up to get himself another coke since the caffeine would only help at this point, settling back on his bed with his treats again once he had his new drink. Letting Yue start, as was the kneazle's preference, Albus gave the board his full attention as he prepared to fight to the bitter end.

Four moves later Yue paused in the middle of studying the board, the kneazle turning his body so that he was looking in the direction of the bedroom door with his ears perked up.

"Do we have a visitor?" Probably Hagrid or Uncle Neville, Albus figured, come to check on him. He'd be scolded for eating nothing but junk for supper, but as long as it wasn't mentioned to his mum or Gran Albus figured…

Huh. Not who he was expecting, at all.

And disbelief was in Scorpius's tone too, as he stepped into the bedroom doorway to survey what was going on on the bed. "You're playing chess with your cat?"

Lips twitching in response to the Slytherin's tone of voice, Albus answered just as dryly that Yue was an excellent chess player, thank you very much.

"Against you, maybe."

Both Albus and Yue sent Scorpius narrow eyed looks for that one.

"You think it's that easy, you go against him. We just started."

"I'm not playing Wizarding Chess with your cat."

"Chicken." Albus made clucking noises. "It won't be a long match, if you're as good as you're implying, Malfoy. So come on, sit your fine arse down here and play him. I dare you. And I have Twizzlers." Albus picked up the bag of licorice and shook it for emphasis.

"Your supper, I'd imagine."

"Good guess. Now come on, I double dog dare you."

Snorting, Scorpius thought but didn't say that he didn't even know what that meant. Instead he opted to point out that unlike idiots like Albus, he had better things to do with his time than play chess with an animal.

Albus just clucked at him some more, while Yue smirked in a way that irritated the Slytherin just as much as Potter was with his stupid insults and insinuations. And while he was certainly intelligent enough to know that he was basically being egged on to make an absolute fool of himself by even agreeing to have a match with the kneazle, Scorpius's pride wouldn't allow him to walk away either. So against his will the Slytherin marched over, took a seat on the bed by Albus's feet, and turning the board said fine, he'd play one game and then Albus would have to eat his words.

"I'll stick with my licorice, thanks. Oh, and may the best badarse win and all that."

Neither bad arse was amused, their eyes on the board.

)

He lost to a fucking cat. A fucking cat! Twice! That he'd also won one game was only a small consolation to Scorpius, as was the fact that he'd lost the first game because he'd started off barely paying attention to the match because he'd thought that a match against a sodding animal wouldn't require much effort on his part. That was still his loss in the long run though; it didn't pay to underestimate an opponent. Basic training 101, that. The whole pride cometh before a fall was also a lesson he'd failed to take into consideration, and Scorpius was paying for it now as Potter's kneazle smirked at him like the bloody thing had just eaten a whole hatchery full of canaries.

"Another match."

The kneazle made a purring sound before shaking its head.

"Why the hell not?"

Holding his gaze Yue gave an exaggerated version of a yawn, and then on silent feet the kneazle padded across the bed before nimbly jumping onto the bedside table, to the clock that rested there.

Getting the message Scorpius pulled out his pocket watch to check the time rather than squint to try and read the hands on the clock, his grey eyes widening when he saw just how late it was. Bloody hell.

Looking over in Albus's direction, with the intention of reaming the Gryffindor out for not pointing out the time sooner, Scorpius had to hold his tongue since there was now no point. Potter was passed out on his side, a half eaten piece of licorice actually still clutched in one hand. How long the other man had been sleeping Scorpius couldn't guess, though come to think of it he didn't recall the idiot saying much of anything after he'd challenged Yue to a tie breaker.

"It's a wonder he could fall asleep between his nap and the caffeine."

Having returned to the bed the kneazle just shrugged his shoulders and settled in to sleep on the pillow Albus wasn't currently using, obviously content to turn in for the night now that he'd proved his mental acuity.

"We're going to have another match tomorrow night, just so we're clear."

An amused sound was Yue's response to that, the feline's eyes closing and body relaxing in obvious dismissal.

Feeling perturbed all over again, big surprise, Scorpius didn't bother to argue the point given the time and his own realization of how tired he was. He'd deal with the kneazle tomorrow. So instead of arguing Scorpius picked up the chess board and moved it and the pieces to the bedside table, making sure that it was out of the way before turning his attention back to Albus.

The Gryffindor looked ridiculous, Scorpius mused as he snatched the piece of licorice from the idiot's hand, sticking the end in his own mouth before reaching out to grab the other sides of the blankets to bring them around to very awkwardly cover the man up properly. It wasn't that cool in the room, the fire was still giving off more than enough heat, but just in case Scorpius adjusted the quilt and sheets as best he could around Albus before heading out, quietly shutting the door behind him.

And since the licorice was still in his mouth Scorpius opted to finish it off, now a little sorry that he'd refused Albus's offers of some earlier as it was a lot better than the regular licorice he was used to. A Muggle candy, perhaps? Either way he'd get some another time, the Gryffindor the man probably had a whole bunch of it stockpiled in his room.

Amused by the thought Scorpius let himself out of Potter's rooms and then crossed over to open his own door, barely missing stepping on his own idiot pet as Snow had apparently passed out in front of the door while waiting for him to come back.

Feeling a bit bad about that, which annoyed him, Scorpius sighed at the way his day was going and then stooped down to scoop the little bundle of fur up, cradling his pet against his chest as he headed for his own bedroom to change and then get to sleep himself.

Depositing Snow on the pillow beside the one he'd use, he was too tired to backtrack and put the animal it its proper bed, Scorpius left Snow there and then quickly stripped out of his clothes before tossing them in the hamper. That done he headed for his dresser, said to hell with that, and changing course went back over to his bed and climbed under the covers, too tired to care about pajamas. It wasn't like he hadn't been spending plenty of time sleeping in the nude lately, anyway.

And it was that thought that reminded Scorpius that he hadn't broken up with Albus like planned.

Oh well, it was probably for the best, Scorpius decided as he drifted off. He'd wait until after he'd schooled Yue completely at chess first.

)

Waking up unusually early the next morning, no real surprise given how much sleep he'd gotten the day before, Albus was a little confused by his blanket situation at first, his mind marveling over the fact that he'd been so tired that he'd messed his sheets up this badly. Then the events of the night before filtered in enough that Albus realized that it must have been Scorpius who'd covered him up, the idea one that made him smile rather stupidly. Of course he'd already established that he was being pretty damn stupid when it came to the Slytherin so no surprise there, really.

Looking around Albus saw that Yue was sprawled out on a pillow, the kneazle looking at him in a way that reminded him of his mum after he'd done something stupid, yet endearing or adorable enough that she wasn't really mad at him.

Lips twitching, Albus opted not to make that comparison, instead asking his kneazle if he'd totally schooled Scorpius at chess while he was sleep.

The pleased look on the kneazle's face said it all even before the nod of confirmation.

"Atta boy." Stretching out his arm and making a fist, Albus grinned as Yue came over to head butt it, which was their version of a first bump. "Shall we celebrate by going outside? It doesn't sound like it's raining, and the walk would do me good."

Nodding his head Yue agreed that that was a great plan indeed.

"Alright then, just give me ten minutes or so to shower and dress, and then we'll head out."

Heading out of the bedroom Albus was true to his word, showering and dressing quickly so that he was ready to go in just under ten minutes. Normally he wasn't clearheaded or coordinated enough to move this quickly in the morning, but today was a rare day indeed.

Picking Yue up to cuddle, something Yue rarely allowed, Albus headed for the nearest exit outside once they'd left their rooms, putting Yue down once when were outside so that the kneazle could take off running wherever the feline's nose directed him.

"No Snow around to lose you your breakfast today, hmm?"

Purring happily over that fact Yue nodded and then began to slink across the grass, prey targeted.

And since he didn't want to watch his pet catch and devour some helpless creature, the circle of life or not, Albus announced that he was going to go for a little jog, and that Yue could catch up to him once he was done eating.

Since odds were high that Albus would scare away his prey if he did stick around, Yue turned his head to give the slightest of nods before returning all his attention to the unsuspecting mouse that was going to be his breakfast very, very shortly.

Making a face, he was only human after all, Albus took off at a light jog, thinking to himself that sex was way better exercise than this, and why the bloody hell hadn't he just slipped into Malfoy's room instead of using up this valuable time outside?

Oh right, the Slytherin was probably still smarting from having his fine arse handed to him by Yue at chess. That was why.

Heh.


	12. Early Morning Fun

BTW, Kudos to vampprincess, who seems to be the only one who realized that Yue and Snow's conversation in the second last chapter was meant to reference Timon and Pumba's conversation from 'The Lion King'. Cause yeah, I'm really that big a Disney kid lol.

Also, Snow's latest song is to the tune of 'My Heart Will Go On', just FYI.

Early Morning Fun

Waking up to the sound of low, rhythmic purring in his ear, Scorpius stared up at the ceiling for a moment before blinking the sleep from his eyes as he mentally processed the question of what he was hearing. That didn't take long, especially since he could feel the little fluffball's fur against his ear, tickling it. That he would have much rather woken up to the sounds of Potter beside him occurred to the Slytherin too, but Scorpius resolutely pushed that traitorous though aside and instead reached up to dislodge his cat from its spot, and bring it around to hold him in front of him between his cupped hands. And as he watched Snow did a little full body wiggle, gave a little yawn, and then those bright eyes were blinking open to focus on him. Cats and kneazles couldn't smile, technically, but Scorpius felt like he was being smiled at as Snow stared back at him.

"I distinctly remember putting you on the other pillow."

An adorable yawn, then those eyes seemed to get even bigger in the most innocent of looks.

"I'm a Slytherin, you know. We're impervious to all cuteness powers unless we're talking about Hugo Weasley." Not that he would admit that to anyone aside from his pet, though now it was occurring to him that Snow could tell Yue what he said, who could in turn tell Albus, dammit. Argh…he'd deny it to his dying day if that happened. As any good Slytherin would.

Besides, Hugo Weasley was a freak of nature. Everyone knew that.

"You're a freak of nature too." Scorpius added, setting Snow down on his chest, one hand starting to stroke down the fur that was sticking out like the silly thing had been struck by lightning sometime during the night. It was like Potter's hair at the back actually, nothing keeping those stubborn strands down no matter how it was brushed or styled. Or at least he hoped that the Gryffindor actually tried on occasion to tame his hair, even if it was a losing battle. Though it was pretty adorable at times too, not that he'd ever say so. It would only encourage the idiot to take less care with his appearance.

Purring away as loud as the little guy was probably capable of, Snow vibrated under Scorpius's hand, making him grin and laugh in reaction. And realizing how he was behaving Scorpius shook his head even as he kept smiling while silently admitting to himself that he really was stuck now, where Snow was concerned. He was stuck with the silly little ball of fluff, for better or for worst. A lot of worst, most likely, given that his pet was like the anti him in both appearance and personality.

"Yue better teach you how to play wizarding chess." Not that he expected that something as small as Snow could have the brains to become the chess master that Yue was, but then beating Snow would be that much easier. If he lost to Snow in the future, he'd never live that humiliation down.

More happy purring, which Scorpius decided to interpret as Snow's promise to try his best to learn how to play the game in the near future.

Picking Snow up again, it was time to get up, Scorpius sat up and then twisting around to deposit the feline on his pillow, since it would still be nice and warm for him. That done he pushed off his covers and got out of bed, stretching his arms out and working his muscles a little as he hurried out of the room to get into the nice warm shower.

The showering didn't take long, though as usual everything else did as Scorpius got dressed and then dealt with his hair and making sure that he looked perfectly put together. Knowing Potter, if he was even awake yet, the man was probably currently throwing on whatever was handy and finger combing his hair, if that. The man really needed someone to take him in hand and teach him about the importance of one's personal appearance. And take him shopping so that he didn't look like a student who'd never been able to graduate instead of a teacher here. In the right sort of clothes the Gryffindor could actually look almost as sexy with his clothes on as he did with them off.

Wincing at both the thoughts and the feelings that laced them, Scorpius called himself an idiot and determinedly pushed them to the back of his mind. Again. It was one thing for him to give in and accept the fact that he was stuck with Snow, and an entirely other thing to think, even for a moment, that he might want to keep Albus around for more than sex. Especially since he'd already made up his mind to end their sexual relationship after he'd completely decimated Yue at wizarding chess. Thinking about waking up with the Gryffindor in the morning, getting ready together and putting the man together since Potter couldn't be bothered to do it…not a good idea. Not remotely.

Resolute in his determination now to think of other things, Scorpius went over to check on Snow, the feline was sleeping again, and scooping him up Scorpius left the room and deposited the fluffball on the feline's bed since the idea of Snow trying to get out of his own bed freaked him out given Snow's size. That done he made sure the cat's breakfast was out and ready for the twit when he woke up, and then headed out for the day without so much as glancing in the direction of Albus's door or thinking about maybe knocking on it to see if the other man wanted to walk with him.

And for the most part Scorpius managed to think about others things pretty much until he was almost at his destination, and caught sight of the Gryffindor walking towards him looking like a complete and total wreck.

"Potter! Are those leaves in your hair?!"

)

Cheeks heating up a bit, the sight of Scorpius scowling at him with his hands on his hips doing it for him in a really unexpected way, Albus sheepishly ran his fingers through his hair again, not really surprised when bits of leaves were dislodged and fell to the ground around him. He'd been trying to finger comb the stuff out of his hair since he'd entered the castle, but obviously he was in worse shape than he'd realized given the critical looks he was getting. Of course according to the Slytherin he regularly dressed like a street urchin, so maybe he was at least presentable. He hoped that that was the case since he was really, really hungry, and he'd be late for breakfast if he went back to his rooms now.

"Does it look that bad?"

"Does it look that bad?" Scorpius repeated, giving him a look that suggested he'd lost his mind since the last time they'd spoken. "You have smudges of dirt on your face, leaves in your hair, and you're wearing completely inappropriate footwear."

Ah. Crud. "Where's the dirt on my face?" Lifting a hand Albus started rubbing the most likely areas, blinking in surprise when Scorpius moved in and batted his hand away with one hand while the other began rubbing at the problem areas with a pristine white handkerchief like he was a child. Not a move he'd expected, but Albus wasn't about to complain as he stayed still and let the man clean him up.

"How did you get so dirty?"

Squirming a little now, he could only imagine what Scorpius would have to say about what he'd been doing, Albus just shrugged his shoulders, hoping to leave it at that.

"Potter."

"You know, you sounded remarkably like my mum there for a sec. Though she'd have said Albus Severus, not just Potter. Please don't do that again." Given that they were having sex with each other, the correlation wasn't one he wanted to make in his mind on an even rare occasion. Talk about a total mood killer.

For his part Scorpius just continued to smirk at him all superior like, which was a sexy look for the man if Albus did say so himself. "I'm going to judge you no matter what, so you might as well tell me. Especially since I'm actually taking time out of my day to help you not look like something your kneazle dragged in. Out with it, Albus."

Albus's lips twitched at the idea of a huge Yue dragging him into the castle or carrying him around in his mouth like a 'present' for him. He'd gotten a number of those until he'd finally been able to get it into his kneazle's head that he'd rather the feline not bring him dead animals to show him that he loved him. Purring and letting him cuddle him was proof enough.

"Potter."

Recognizing the underlining threat if he didn't hurry up and spill it, Albus rolled his eyes, sighed, and then admitted that he'd been playing in the leaves.

"Playing in the leaves?"

"Yeah. There were some huge piles already made and…I'm only human. How could I resist?"

Taking a step back Scorpius stared at him, the expression that said he thought Albus completely mental back in full force. "How could you resist? By remembering that you're not only too old for such things but a teacher on top of that. You're supposed to be setting an example, Potter."

"Wait…is that you're way of saying you want all your students to be like you? Because on behalf of all the other teachers I am literally begging you not to do that. We'd all have mental breakdowns and end up in St. Mungo's for long term care."

"Oh ha ha."

"No. See you think I'm joking, but I'm really not. And I actually like you now."

A startled look. "You like me now?"

"You grew on me." He almost added 'like mold', but Scorpius had just cleaned his face for him, plus he really did mean it that he liked Scorpius now, a lot more than he had in all the years they'd been at Hogwarts together. Above and beyond the shagging too, and Scorpius should probably know that given the way their relationship seemed to be evolving lately. In case it kept evolving in ways he wasn't expecting.

"You're mental."

"You're mentaler."

"That's not even a word, Potter."

Opening his mouth to argue, Albus closed it again because yeah, he was pretty sure it actually wasn't a word, and arguing that it was would just make him look like an idiot in the long run. So instead he asked if he really needed to transfigure something into a comb to get his hair under control.

"The only way your hair could ever be under control, Potter, is if you shaved your head."

Amused when the Slytherin punctuated the statement by reaching up to use his fingers to try to card the worst of the leaf bits out, Albus pointed out that that didn't make any sense since if he shaved his bloody head than he would have and hair, period.

"Hush."

Rocking back and forth on his heels in amusement, Albus remained quiet right up until he saw the school's Herbology teacher over the blond's shoulder, the look on the man's face indicating that Albus better open his mouth and say something before the poor man keeled over from a heart attack or something.

So he grinned and waved at Neville as he called out an explanation to his father's friend. "Apparently my appearance was so bloody bad that Professor Malfoy here would have been ashamed to be seen sitting at the same table as me."

Scorpius's shoulders stiffened a little, but the man resolutely kept dislodging the leaves until Neville was close enough that they could all talk normally. Then he dropped his hands and turned to meet the older man's gaze head on, his tone as coolly cordial as usual. "Professor Longbottom."

"Professor Malfoy." Wearing an expression that made it clear he didn't know what was going on and didn't like that fact, Neville nodded once in Scorpius's direction before turning his attention to Albus, the man's gaze looking him over from top to bottom before focusing extra long on Albus's eyes, as if to confirm that they were clear and not displaying any symptoms that might suggest he was drugged, drunk, or not in control of his actions.

"How did you get so dirty so early in the morning?" Neville finally asked after his thorough survey was finished, the man retrieving his own handkerchief to remove a small smudge near Albus's left ear that Scorpius had apparently missed earlier.

"It was Yue's fault."

"He was playing in the leaves." Scorpius corrected, throwing Albus under the bus with a small smirk on his face.

"Oh really, Albus." Forgetting the Slytherin in their midst for the moment, Neville shook his head at Albus. "You're still doing that? I would have thought that unfortunate incident with the snakes would have put you off jumping in the leaves if your age didn't."

"One is never too old to play in leaves."

"Snakes? What about snakes?"

Neville smirked at Scorpius, though the joke was at Albus's expense as his informed him that when Albus was about sixteen or so the boy had jumped into an old pile of leaves only to discover that three snakes had curled up in it first for warmth. The boy had screamed loud enough that James and Fred had come running with wands drawn, thinking Albus was being tortured or something.

"I did not scream, for the last time! I yelped! Big difference! James and Fred blew it way out of proportion for their own stupid amusement." Albus aimed puppy eyes in Scorpius's direction, forgetting that he had to watch himself in his quest to defend his manhood. "I didn't scream."

"Right." Drawling it out, it was obvious Scorpius didn't believe him in the slightest. "Were they at least adders?" That was the most common venomous snake to be found in Britain to the best of his knowledge, but even then the bites would have only been painful, not likely fatal. They only bit when surprised or feeling threatened too, though suddenly having a teenage boy land on them had probably struck the reptiles as being an offense that warranted an attack.

"No." Albus couldn't help but pout a little, mumbling that they'd just been Aesculapians.

"That's just sad." A smirk and a brief pause, then Scorpius consulted his pocket watch. "And we should head in or we're all going to be late for breakfast."

"Crap. He's right, and I must eat!" Albus's stomach rumbled then for emphasis, his brain remembering now that it was super hungry.

"Given that you missed out on supper last night that's no surprise. Let's get you fed then." Placing a hand on the small of Albus's back Neville started herding him in the direction they needed to go, Albus letting himself be herded for the moment since one, that would distract the other man from asking him about him being all friendly with Scorpius, and two…he really, really was hungry!

Ergo it was a win win situation for him.

)

Having woken up again and finished his breakfast, Snow washed up to make sure that he looked his absolute best before heading out for the day, leaving his rooms behind and immediately going over to Yue's to see if his bestest friend was there. Sometimes he wasn't, since Yue liked to roam all over the big house they all lived in, but when he stuck his head in and called out Yue answered, which made him really happy so that he was all but skipping as he hurried in once he had permission. And following his nose he found Yue sitting on a window sill, which was unfortunately up way too high for him to join his friend.

"Hi, Yue!"

"Snow."

"Guess what, guess what!" Wiggling with glee Snow couldn't wait to tell him, blurting out how he'd gotten to sleep in the big bed with his person, and how Scorpius had given him lots of extra pets and had really talked to him instead of just calling him a ball of fluff or saying he was too short and wasn't that wonderful!

Since he knew how much Snow wanted his person to like him Yue figured that congratulations were in order, so he said so. And really he was happy that Malfoy was being nicer to Snow, especially since that would mean the little furball wouldn't be coming to him for advice on how to make the man like him more.

"Thanks. I'm having the bestest day. So you wanna go play with me, maybe?"

"Not right now. I'm overly full at the moment."

"Oh. Okay."

Sighing over Snow's dejected tone of voice, and cursing the fact that it worked so effectively on him even though you'd have thought he'd have built up an immunity to it now, Yue slowly got to his feet and then hopped onto a nearby chair, then from there to the floor. Not surprisingly Snow immediately ran up to him, beaming goodwill and happiness in a way that never failed to ruffle Yue's fur a little.

"Tell you what. I'm going to stretch out here on the rug and you can sing me your latest songs. After that we'll see how I feel about playing whatever with you."

"Yay!"

Wiggling with joy Snow concentrated on clearing his voice and then quite happily launched into a rendition of his newest, original song, explaining beforehand that he'd made it up especially about him and Yue cause they were bestest friends.

"Every day at Hogwarts,

I see you, I smell you,

That is how I know you are near.

Far across the hallway, and spaces, between us,

You have come to play with me.

Once, more, I came through the door,

And you're here, in the room,

And now the fun will start."

Yue honestly didn't know what to say to that.


	13. A Cozy Scene

A Cozy Scene

Albus wasn't terribly surprised when Neville asked him to visit him in one of the greenhouses later that day, his father's friend was way more observant than a lot of people gave the man credit for. Plus the Herbology teacher had known both Albus and Scorpius since they were boys, and Albus figured that it was too much to hope that he and Scorpius hadn't given themselves away at least a little with that scene before breakfast. So he agreed to meet the man when they both had a spare period, letting himself into the humid space at the agreed upon time with a cheerful resignation.

He found the other man watering some plant that Albus didn't recognize, which wasn't surprising since he'd never been all that great at remembering their names unless they were particularly interesting or cause for concern if he got too close to it.

"Hello, Al. How's your afternoon going so far?"

"Can't complain. Though I'm still shaking loose bits of leaves from my hair." Rolling his eyes Albus sighed for dramatic effect.

"Your father's hair."

"In a word. Or three, technically." And figuring he'd cut to the chase since he knew how confrontations upset the older man, Albus leaned his hip against the worktable Neville was at and asked him point blank what he wanted to talk to him about.

"Malfoy."

"I thought so."

"I don't know what you're up to there, and frankly I probably don't want to know." Neville glanced in Albus's direction and then quickly returned his gaze back towards his plants. "I just want…feel the need to say that you need to tread very lightly where that one's concerned. If you're up to something, by which I mean if you have some ulterior motive for trying to become friends with Malfoy, you need to stop."

"Worried he'll do me in?"

The sound Neville made in response to that was one of wry amusement. "I know I said before that it would only do Malfoy good, being around you, but Albus…you do realize that he's not someone you want to get on the wrong side of, don't you?"

"Yessssssss."

"Albus." The older man's tone said it all. "I'm serious. If you're attempting…whatever you're up to with him with hidden motives, you need to stop. He won't find it funny and will make you very sorry in the end. And…it would be cruel to him, too."

Okay, he had not expected that last part.

"Malfoy is one of the most self contained people I've ever met, and one of the most solitary by choice. If he wanted to draw people in he could, it's rare but I've seen him use charm a time or two and he can pull it off shockingly well. He chooses to be alone and you wiggling your way into his life…well the fact that he's letting you get close at all is no small thing. You need to respect that fact."

"You…you're trying to protect…him." All his planned arguments had revolved around the idea that Scorpius wasn't the threat most people would likely assume he would be to Albus, especially since he was a Potter, but here Neville was basically warning Albus off for Scorpius's sake.

"Strange, I know." Neville finally looked up and held Albus's gaze. "He's a sarcastic, egotistical ass who practically bleeds green and silver, he's so Slytherin. I didn't like him as a boy and I don't care for him as an adult, either. But he's been blamed and punished for crimes others committed all his life, and for all his faults Malfoy is not an evil or even bad man. He just doesn't like people and keeps them at a distance as much as possible."

"No kidding." And loving Neville that much more for caring about Scorpius's wellbeing, especially since the Slytherin had done nothing to earn Neville's protection, Albus moved to sling an arm around the man's shoulder. "I'm not trying to be his friend just to mess with him, or even to satisfy my curiosity about what actually makes him tick behind all that armor he wears. I really do like him, in spite of myself."

"And you aren't just doing this because it will drive James batty when he hears about it?"

"No. Though that is a side benefit."

"Alright then. Though now I have to question your sanity, Albus, because this is Scorpius Malfoy we're talking about here. That boy doesn't do anything unless it benefits him in some way."

"Maybe he likes the idea of it driving James completely nuts?"

Opening and then closing his mouth, Neville had to admit that that was a possibility.

In agreement with that, Albus took a couple moments to consider that Scorpius might be sleeping with him just so that he could see the look that news would put on James's face when he told him. Just that quickly he discarded the idea though, since even if that had been a factor previously, Albus was very sure the Slytherin had kept coming back for more because they were just that good in bed together.

"So why are you getting mixed up with him anyway? It's not like you've ever lacked for friends and he's the polar opposite of the people you like to hang out with."

"Blonds are more fun?"

Narrowing his eyes a little, Neville turned and pointed a very close to threatening finger in Albus's direction. "If you're shagging him, or even thinking of shagging him, everyone who knows your father and his is going to curse you for putting those mental images in their heads."

Getting what Neville was implying, namely that he and Scorpius looked just like their fathers and comparisons were always being made, Albus grimaced.

"Ugh."'

"You have no idea."

)

Scorpius had planned to spend the evening grading homework with the help of a couple glasses of whiskey, which would have hopefully kept him from completely losing it over the gross stupidity of some of his students. That had been his plan, and he'd said as much when Albus had asked him if he'd be paying him a visit after supper that afternoon. How he'd let himself be talked into retrieving said homework from his rooms after the last meal of the evening, and going to Albus's rooms instead, was a mystery to him long after he'd agreed to the change in his plans. The fact that Albus had offered to grade the multiple choice sections of a test he'd given his forth years had definitely been an incentive, true, but Scorpius had been planning to dump Albus before the chess incident, and it struck him that spending time together when sex or chess wasn't on the menu was going to set a bad precedent.

Yet here they were, sitting in front of the fireplace with the schoolwork stacked in front of them, their cats curled up together nearby to enjoy the fire's warmth. Off to the side were mugs that still held some hot chocolate, as well as plates with crumbs from the smores Albus had insisted they make after they'd been working away for an hour.

It was those Weasley genes, Scorpius thought absently to himself, that made the Gryffindor such a bottomless pit when it came to food. The man had eaten plenty at supper, and then had gobbled down at least six smores like he'd been made to starve all day. Personally he'd only had four, and even then he'd only had the last one because Albus had kept making the damn things for him and teasing him into eating them.

Really though, he'd have written off the whole thing if he hadn't had the opportunity to watch Albus lick melted chocolate off his fingers, which had certainly made the whole grading thing a lot more bearable in Scorpius's opinion.

Glancing in Albus's direction, just to make sure the idiot wasn't trying to make any more while he wasn't looking, Scorpius noted that the Gryffindor appeared absorbed in the marking, hunched over in a way that had Scorpius shaking his head as he informed the man, yet again, that he had deplorable posture.

"Well we can't all be born with sticks up our arses to give us perfect posture, now can we?" Looking up Albus grinned at him, the twinkle in his eyes making it clear he was just teasing and wasn't being mean.

Potter was doing that a lot recently, teasing him. He didn't like it. But since he didn't want to come off as whiney, or tip the man off as to how much it got to him, Scorpius simply raised an eyebrow as he delivered a response that he was sure would get a very satisfying reaction from the Gryffindor.

"Well if you hadn't been such an annoying git when we were students I could have fucked you into having proper posture. Too bad you're beyond help now."

Laughing in delight, which had most definitely not been Scorpius's intention, Albus grinned at him as he leaned forward, a devilish gleam in his eyes. "You're being too hard on yourself, Malfoy. You can still get it up well enough. You aren't THAT old yet."

Cheeks flushing with color, Scorpius actually stuttered as he pointed out that they were the same age.

"Technically you're a little older."

While that was true, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone in their world that didn't know when Albus's birthday was since the birth of each of Harry Potter's children had been a huge deal, Scorpius still wanted to argue but couldn't because he knew a trap when he saw one. Potter wanted to embroil him in innuendo banter that would lead to them having sex in front of the fire and that wasn't going to happen. He'd already decided as soon as he'd seen where Albus thought they should set up to work. It was not happening. They had work to do, and that being the case Scorpius forced his voice into a completely mature tone as he stated that fact, pointedly looking at the papers Albus had yet to mark for him.

Rather than argue with him Albus just smiled at him. "Yes, Professor."

Damn.

Scowling at the annoying little shit, who was pretending complete absorption in the papers he was now looking at, Scorpius cursed the fact that his title sounded so dirty and sexual when Albus said it. He was referred to as professor countless times every day, and it had never made him think inappropriate thoughts until now. And only when it was Albus saying it, with that look in his eyes that did annoying things to Scorpius's concentration and ability to focus on other things.

The little shit knew it to, and Scorpius was determined to become immune or at least present the image of disinterest at the very least. So far he was failing horribly at that.

"You know, I really would have had to provide you with sexual favors to pass your classes, Malfoy. The way you've worded some of these questions is downright evil, even for you."

"Oh I'm sure whoever did your O.W.L.s for the subject would have passed you just because of your father."

"True, but I'd have never gotten to the point of being able to take the O.W.L.s for Potions if you kept failing me for the first four years." Albus rolled his eyes, holding one of the pages up as he read the question outloud, stating at the end of it that he wasn't even sure what Scorpius was asking, much less the answer.

"And that's why your sister is the only member of your immediate family that wasn't complete pants at Potions."

Eyebrows rising, Albus asked if Scorpius hadn't just said something nice about Lily.

"No. You must be hearing things."

"I must be." Setting the paper aside the Gryffindor got up to his feet, Scorpius watching him warily as the menace came over to take a seat beside him, so that their thighs were pressed against each other as Albus leaned into him. "I think marking all those answers wrong, thus helping you destroy those poor children' grade averages, is messing with my brain. I'm not used to failing people."

"Given that you teach a bird course, that really isn't surprising."

)

"True." Albus grinned when Scorpius gave him a surprised look, not surprising since the Slytherin had likely meant the comment to be either insulting or at the very least antagonistic. "What? It is. Hell, most of the kids will forget the majority of what Hagrid and I teach them about Magical Creatures even before they leave the school for good. Most don't even bother to take it into seventh year unless it's required or they're hoping to boost their overall grade average. I teach it because I love working with animals and teaching others to do so as well. It's as simple as that."

"You're simple, alright."

Albus rolled his eyes but let that do, instead giving the blond a nudge with his elbow. "Why did you decide to become a teacher, anyway? I've always wondered, especially when you make it so bloody obvious that it isn't a love of children or even teaching in general."

"None of your nevermind. Now back to work."

"Have I mentioned to you today that you're a slave driver, Professor Malfoy? So mean to me." But willing to oblige for the moment Albus got up and retook his seat so that he was closer to the fire, picking up a marshmallow and putting it on the stick he'd been using earlier to start roasting it over the flames.

"You are not eating another one."

The smirk Albus sent in Scorpius's direction made it clear that yes, he was. And the Slytherin couldn't stop him. Besides, he figured he'd earned it, both by listening to Neville's lecturing earlier and helping Scorpius fail his students by marking the damn tests for him.

"Keep that up and you're going to get as fat as your grandmother."

"Oi. My Gran is not fat, she's just…very curvy. And no man should have to say that about his grandmother, even if he is gay." Mock shuddering for Scorpius's benefit, since it wasn't actually that horrible as he'd spent most of his childhood with people commenting on the physical attractiveness of his cousins and siblings, Albus easily switched to smirking at Scorpius. "And better a woman with curves than a stick like YOUR paternal grandmother."

"You shut up about my grandmother or I'll shut you up."

"I don't suppose you'd do it in a fun way?"

The scowl Scorpius sent in his direction made it clear that no, it would not be in a way Albus would enjoy, unfortunately.

"At least I didn't insult your mum." Albus decided to point out, turning the marshmallow around to cook it evenly. "Both are mums are quite fit, actually."

Scorpius outright glared at him as he stated that if Albus continued with this line of discussion he'd choke the man to death with his own marshmallow.

"Well that's harsh." And judging said marshmallow to be done, Albus retrieved two graham crackers and a perfectly sized piece of chocolate, building his smore with practiced ease before biting in with relish. And okay, maybe he moaned a little just to mess with the Slytherin's head. But it really was that good, especially since the chocolate had softened and made it all that much gooier.

"If Weasleys and Potters weren't skinny by design you'd be the size of a house thanks to the amount of junk you eat."

"And if you Malfoys didn't lose your ability to maintain a hard on so young in life I'm sure they'd be more of you."

Jaw dropping, Scorpius stared at Albus in stunned shock, the Gryffindor having to work hard to maintain a straight face while wishing rather desperately for a camera.

"What. Did. You. Just. Say?"

"You heard me. Though you said it before I did, technically. After all, you obviously haven't improved my posture in the slightest despite the ample opportunity you've had to correct it." Punctuating the words by taking another bite of his smore, Albus focused on enjoying it since it might be the last thing he ever ate judging from the fury that was sparking in Scorpius's eyes rather spectacularly.

Merlin but he did love riling the blond up like this.

With very slow, deliberate care, Scorpius set down the papers he'd been holding in his hand, the slighter man getting to his feet with a lethal grace that had Albus fighting the urge to squirm in anticipation. It had been hard enough to keep his hands to himself this long, what with the firelight playing over all those beautiful sharp angles of the man's face and warming the man's normally pale skin. Plus hanging out together in front of a fire, just doing normal stuff with each other, it was a sort of seduction too, though a much subtler, potentially more dangerous sort.

Still, when Scorpius held out a hand Albus took it, letting himself be brought up to his feet and flush against the other man's chest. And when Scorpius's free hand came up to thread his fingers into Albus's hair, tightening them in the mass of it to get a good grip on it, Albus just leaned in, smiling the whole while as he waited to see what the blond's next move would be.

"You Gryffindors never know when to leave well enough alone, do you?"

"Is that your way of saying you can't fix my posture? Cause I figured that out already, Mate."

"We'll just see about that, won't we?"

To drive his meaning home the blond used his grip on Albus's hair to maneuver his head into the ideal position to slate their lips against each other for a heated kiss that definitely had Albus's posture suffering for it as he was bent backward. But rather than try and change that Albus leaned into the snogging as he quite happily gave the man's tongue full access to every corner of his mouth, knowing that he was in good hands. In fact, Albus decided to wrap his own free hand around Scorpius's neck, just to make sure the other man didn't go anywhere any time soon.

Better than smores any day.


	14. This Is His Life

This Is His Life

Since neither man wanted to put on a show for their cats, and their cats would have thanked them for that curtesy if they could have, Albus was more than happy to follow when Scorpius broke off their intense making out session to grab him by the wrist and using his hold to pull Albus across the room towards the doorway. That they were headed towards his bedroom suited Albus just fine, though he was a little surprised that the Slytherin was making this that easy for him. He'd hardly had to annoy and goad the man into forgetting the homework they'd been marking at all. Of course no teacher enjoyed marking work, especially when they were bound to do poorly given Scorpius evil teaching ways. Which was something he was going to have to think about, Albus mused to himself, in terms of how he could bribe the other man into being kinder to his students. For the good of his students, he was willing to provide Scorpius with all sorts of sexual favors.

Grinning at the idea, and thinking about what he could offer the Slytherin in exchange for his cooperation, Albus honestly didn't see it coming when they walked through his bedroom door, only for Scorpius to suddenly press him up against the door as soon as it closed behind them.

"You think I don't know when you're manipulating me?"

It was probably wrong for him to find the way Scorpius hissed the words sexy, but Albus did.

"Are you saying that I can wrap you around my little finger when I want to?"

Oh, but his Slytherin didn't like that either, the way Scorpius's eyes went all steely making Albus grin that much wider as he did a little wiggle in anticipation of what was to come.

"We'll just see who's wrapped around whose finger, Potter."

And so saying Scorpius's hands moved between them to undo Albus's belt and then the hooks of his trousers, jerking the material apart for easy access. "Turn around. Now."

Not arguing, and most definitely intrigued, Albus was sure to rub up against the other man as he did as ordered, including placing his palms up against the door since he had a feeling he'd need the support soon. And then Scorpius surprised him again when he used his body to flatten Albus's against the door.

Opening his mouth to ask just what the other man had planned for them, it was a groan that escaped the Gryffindor's lips instead when Scorpius began to rub his erection insistently against Albus's ass while the blond's fingers dug into his hips, angling him just right so that Albus couldn't help but arch and rub against his lover in turn, wanting to get Scorpius as hot and bothered as he was quickly becoming. Not that the Slytherin needed any encouragement; Scorpius obviously knowing what he was doing. The only question was why wasn't Scorpius's hand coming around to wank him off while he humped his ass, since it was obvious Scorpius wasn't interested in dragging this out.

Hmmm…ah, he got it. He was being used as a means to an orgasm, Scorpius way of putting him in his place for what he'd insinuated moments before.

Albus would have rolled his eyes over the stupidity of that plan if he hadn't been so busy being amused by it. He was damn happy with being used this way after all, especially since he could just take care of himself after Scorpius had come and give the twit a show in the process, one that would blow his little Slytherin mind too.

So Albus didn't ask for Scorpius to jerk him off, or do it himself. No, he remained right where he was, grinding his ass against Scorpius's front for the other man's benefit, and enjoying himself immensely in the process. And if he decided to be a little shit and egg Scorpius on by going into a little verbal detail about how he'd love it if Scorpius were to pull down his trousers, make him open his legs, and then fuck him between his thighs…well who could blame him for pointing out that Scorpius was leaking enough precum at this point to lube up his inner thighs while keeping it just the right side of rough.

The cursing that greeted that statement wasn't unexpected, though Albus figured he deserved points for not rubbing it in, no pun intended, when Scorpius shifted the grip he had on Albus's thighs to jerk down the clothing in his way. Plus he opened up his thighs and bent over to offer up a very nice view of his ass without being asked, waiting patiently while Scorpius moved slightly away to deal with his own pesky clothing.

Humming in pleasure when Scorpius rubbed his definitely leaking erection against his ass before sliding it between his thighs, Albus tightened his inner thigh muscles to make it clear he wanted to keep said erection right where it was. Especially when Scorpius started fucking between his thighs with a single-minded focus that Albus appreciated almost as much as the sensations and pleasure each thrust inspired in his nerve endings.

Which he told Scorpius of course, because who didn't know how much Malfoys loved having their egos stroked. It was a foreplay in and of itself, plus Albus loved the way Scorpius cursed and lost enough of his cool to talk a little dirty himself as the blond made it quite clear that he was going to insure Albus wouldn't be able to sit down comfortably later.

"I'm okay with staying on all fours for the rest of the night if you are, Malfoy."

His shoulder got bit for that one.

"You just never know when to keep your mouth shut, do you, Potter."

"Well whose fault is it that I can still talk, huh?"

"No more talking."

Neither of them lasted long after that proclamation, thank God.

Though Albus couldn't resist asking Scorpius, after they were done staining the door with their cum, if he couldn't go back, get his leftover chocolate, and then lick it off Scorpius's body for dessert.

Albus decided that the smack of Scorpius's hand on his ass wasn't a no, but a maybe.

Excellent.

)

Scorpius was a bitter man. There were really no words for how bitter he was, in fact. And while he normally didn't bemoan the fact that he didn't have any friends, it was not doing the Slytherin's peace of mind any good to only have Albus to confine in when it comes to how mortifying it was to be beaten at chess by a kneazle. Again and again. With an occasional win, yes, but never getting two in a row…it was beyond demoralizing. And how could he declare himself better than Yue when he couldn't total crush the feline beneath his feet? Which he had to do before he could break up with Albus, because once they broke things off Yue wouldn't want to play with him anymore. Just to punish him. Because Yue was a total shit that way. The damn thing always smirked at him after beating him, Yue's stupid tail wagging oh so slowly and smugly at him like a taunt that made it clear the feline was smart enough to know just what he was doing to Scorpius and loving it. So yeah, given how much the furball loved Albus it went without saying that the kneazle would make him suffer for ending the relationship.

Wait, no, not relationship. The end of their arrangement, that's what he'd meant to say. To think.

FUCK!

Resisting the urge to smash his head up against a wall a few times, not a good idea given the building materials used to build Hogwarts, Scorpius had to settle for sending a death glare in the direction of some giggling students just to make them pale and flee like rats on a sinking ship. It made him feel a little better. But not by much.

See, this was why his life was going to hell in a hand basket. Because it wasn't bad enough that he kept losing at chess to an animal, but those very losses led him to jumping Potter's body after the matches to make himself feel better. And then, after they'd shagged, he more often than not was worn out by the sex, and it would be late because he stayed up late playing chess, so he'd end up passing out in Albus's bed and then waking up to find them cuddled up together come morning.

Sometimes there was shower sex too.

It was all becoming a vicious cycle, Scorpius acknowledged grimly, especially now that he'd learned that Albus considered it an extreme aphrodisiac to bring chocolate into the bedroom. And now he also knew how much he enjoyed having chocolate licked off his body, dammit.

He was never going to be able to smell melted chocolate again without thinking of Albus's tongue lapping at his skin while the other man made these sexy sounds in the back of his throat that sounded like a deep purr and fucking did things to him that Scorpius couldn't put into words. If he loved chocolate as much as Albus did he'd probably be doomed to sport wood for the remainder of his life.

As it was Scorpius couldn't help but think about the fact that later in the afternoon he needed to go down to Hogsmeade, where he could easily get his hand on more chocolate and bring it back to bribe Albus with later. The man was remarkably open to being bribed with chocolate. Not that the Gryffindor was at all inhibited. In true Weasley/Potter form Albus was the type who would probably be willing to try just about anything once. Which was such a fucking turn on. He'd never had a lover who was so into playing and experimenting in bed-no, not a lover. The man he was shagging.

What the fuck was wrong with him?

Stupid damned mind. Stupid, damned, sex obsessed mind, Scorpius corrected bitterly as he adjusted his robes. Because now, thanks to thinking about sex with Albus, he was getting erect again. Just as he was approaching his classroom where he'd be faced with his small group of seventh years, who would definitely notice since they were obsessed with sex already too. Because the fates hated him just that much.

This was what happened when a Malfoy was dumb enough to interact with a damn Potter. It never ended well for the former.

Shaking his head Scorpius ordered his thoughts and body to get with it and remember who and what he was. He was not this man and did not want to be him either. He was cool and controlled, and he didn't let anyone or anything effect himself against his will. He had mastery over his life and he wouldn't allow a Potter of all people to turn his world upside down this way.

With that in mind Scorpius was able to hold onto his cool persona right up until he arrived at his classroom, his self-preservation instincts kicking into gear when he saw that the students that had already arrived were gathered around his desk for some reason. Or they were at his desk until they sensed his arrival, all six immediately hurrying over to their stations and in the process revealed what had held their attention moments before.

There were flowers on his desk.

And while Scorpius regularly questioned the intelligence of his students these were his seventh years. They were ones that had survived having him for a teacher for two years now and achieved marks high enough to get them this far. They were not stupid enough to put flowers on his desk for him as a joke. At least not when he still had the majority of their last school year to make them rue the day they'd done something so foolish, anyway.

Still, Scorpius gave them an assessing look as he made his way down the main aisle and came to a stop in front of the flowers, his eyes narrowing as he accessed the foreign object.

They were Jonquil Erlicheer, the white, fragrant blooms clustered together in one of the more visually appealing versions of this particular Narcissus hybrid. It didn't have any use when it came to potion making, though it was used in perfumes occasionally.

In the language of flowers, if he wasn't mistaken, they were also a plea for the receiver to return the giver's affection.

What the hell were they doing on his desk?

A quick search through the stems revealed no card, so whoever the idiot was he or she wasn't going to make it too easy for him to find the culprit that way. Or he or she might have stolen it from one of the greenhouses, as the plant wasn't native to Britain. Hogsmeade was a possibility, at least with the older students, but that wasn't likely given the timing of the last scheduled visit.

Turning around Scorpius studied the expressions on each of his students' face in turn again, seeing nothing on their pale faces to suggest they knew anything about how the flowers had gotten on his desk.

But he would find out. Oh yes he would.

)

By breakfast the next day pretty much everyone in the school knew that someone had sent Professor Malfoy flowers. The fact that said flowers had been pretty, fragrant, and in a fancy planter…well no one knew what to make of that. Had someone put some stinky, carnivorous plant in the man's classroom the student and teaching body would have understood even as the shook their heads over the stupidity of whoever had been dumb enough to make the move. But to present him with something that could only be seen as a show of affection…unless someone was dumb enough to think they could play a practical joke on the professor by making him think that someone was interested in him. That was a possibility, some agreed in hushed voices. Those who were stupid enough to do something like that were offended when people asked if they'd done it. They weren't THAT stupid, thank you very much.

The mental lists generated by those most interested in the anomaly of someone possibly doing something nice for their Potions professor didn't seriously consider that Professor Potter might be the culprit; the man was too smart to go that route to mess with a Malfoy's head. Plus of the three Potters he was the nicest one, and had apparently almost never picked fights with the lone Malfoy heir since the two had started working at Hogwarts together.

And they weren't wrong to think that, in a way. Albus definitely wasn't stupid enough to think it would be a good idea to make his favorite Slytherin think he was being courted when he wasn't for his own amusement. Sending Scorpius flowers for his own amusement on the other hand, and out of a genuine desire to see what the blond would do if he were to court him...that Albus would totally do, however. Especially since, according to Yue, he was a going to be stuck with Scorpius for life.

When Malfoy would realize that fact, well Albus was with his kneazle when it came to believing that the blond was too delusional and lost in his own Slytherin superiority to realize that if he was determined to stick with Albus until he beat Yue at chess Scorpius was going to be sleeping with Albus until one of them died.

It had irked Albus more than a little at first, when Yue had informed him that during one of his matches with Malfoy the man had grumbled under his breath that he had to crush the kneazle at chess so that he could break things off with Albus once and for all. Actually, in all honesty, Albus would say that he'd been pretty fucking furious for the first couple hours or so, especially since he'd been starting to think that maybe he would try to worm his way into Scorpius's affection enough to convince the idiot to go out with him for real instead of just hooking up after work. Being shagged so that the man could play chess with his kneazle was not something any wizard could take lying down, pun totally intended.

But then he'd stopped to think about why Malfoy would want to end their arrangement, especially when it wasn't like the sex wasn't still brilliant and only getting better now that they'd had time to learn each other's preferences and what really did it for the other. And knowing the way the blond's mind worked, well it hadn't taken Albus long to start theorizing that he wasn't wrong to think that Malfoy was starting to like their present arrangement too much and that was scaring the poor little Slytherin off. Typical Malfoy.

Telling Malfoy that he liked him after the leaf incident obviously hadn't been one of his smartest moves either, but it was done and Albus had been left with the decision of how to handle this latest fork in the road since Scorpius wasn't mature enough to have a vote in that.

He could have just dumped the idiot, that would have been the smart thing to do, but at the end of the day Albus was self-aware enough to recognize that he wasn't willing to lose what he and Scorpius had without a fight. Hence the fact that he'd hatched a plan that would not only punish Scorpius for being such a total ass, but would hopefully befuddle and mess with the Slytherin's brain so much that the other man wouldn't realize he was being seduced until Albus had him right where he wanted him.

The major problem though was that Albus didn't exactly know how to go about courting another bloke. Courting a girl was something he understood in the abstract, he had plenty of women in his life who liked to talk about the wooing failures or successes of the men in their lives. But courting another man had to be different, especially since his gender didn't seem to be nearly as enthralled by chocolate as he was.

And Scorpius let him bring chocolate to bed. Yay!

Pushing that distracting thought aside, he'd revisit it later when he was alone and could enjoy it properly, Albus forced himself to focus on the fact that he wasn't sure what to get or do for Scorpius next. Hell, he couldn't even figure out if he wanted to reveal that he was the one who'd sent the flowers or just sit back and see how long it took Malfoy to figure out that it had been him.

Hmm…maybe he should ask Louis or Hugo for some advice.

That could work.


	15. Friends Are For

Friends Are For

"-and then he cursed some more, and I thought he was going to throw the pretty flower plant in the fire, but he didn't. So now it's sitting by the window, and it makes the whole room smell really nice, so I like it a lot. Oh, and my person says that when he finds out who sent him the plant he's going to slip him or her a potion that will make them break out in exploding pustules. Or maybe make all their hair fall out if they're vain like someone named Louis. I don't think he likes this Louis person very well. Do you know him?"

"I do. He's…interesting." That was the nicest way Yue could think to put it as he walked down the currently deserted hallway with Snow. He actually did appreciate the uniqueness of Louis Weasley, the blond was an interesting human, but Yue did understand why some people, like Malfoy, weren't terribly fond of that particular Weasley.

Not that most people dared say anything against the blond for fear of the man's wrath, Yue thought with a smirk, not to mention the Gryffindor's huge husband and Louis's insane fan club. And remembering something Albus had said the day before Yue added that he was fairly sure the blond would be coming to visit in the near future, so Snow could possibly meet him then.

Wiggling his little body with joy, he loved making new friends, Snow asked if Louis was very pretty like the flowers.

"He would say so. And for a human he seems to have quite a few admirers. Or he did."

"What happened to him? Was he only cute as a kitten?"

"No, he just managed to ensnare a very large and powerful mate no one wants to compete with for him."

"What's a mate?"

"A mate is a special person. Like how we have a person that's ours, only better than that. A mate is the one we stay with for as long as we live, and have children with and love more than anyone else."

Eyes wide, Snow couldn't begin to imagine such a thing. But he was trying and frowning because he didn't like the idea that there was more than one person who was more special to Yue than him. Albus was okay, because he was Yue's person, as Scorpius was Snow's person, but… "Do you have a mate, Yue?"

"If I had one you'd know."

"Oh." Snow just caught himself before he said that that was good.

"Yue!"

Both felines jolting a little at the sound of Yue's name being called, the two turned around to see two people walking towards them at a leisurely pace. One was blond and quite stunning, almost like a female in Snow's opinion, while the other had brown hair on his head and his cheeks, his eyes so very kind and absolutely lovely as he smiled at them.

"Hugo!" His whole demeanor changing Yue ran like the hounds of hell were after him in the direction of the man who had called out his name, Hugo crouching down to scoop Yue up as soon as the kneazle had reached him.

And standing back up again the man called Hugo cuddled the feline against his throat while Yue rubbed his head against the man's jaw and purred madly to show his love and affection. "How have you been, My friend? I hear and see that you have a new friend as well. Is this Malfoy's pet?"

Still in a state of shock, he'd never seen his bestest friend shower anyone with affection like this before, Snow could do nothing but stand there and stare at the man.

"Malfoy, stuck with a little powderpuff for a pet. I love it!" Laughing in delight Louis reached over to give Yue's head a pat before walking over to scoop Snow up, loving how small and fluffy the creature was. "Maybe I should get one of these little guys. Think my sweetie would go for it?"

"While I have every confidence in your ability to talk your husband into things…are you sure it's wise to get a pet he could squash accidentally so easily?"

"Good point."

Snickering at that, Yue met Snow's gaze with as much of a smile on his face as a feline could manage. "This is Hugo, Albus's cousin. He's one of the best humans I've ever had the pleasure meeting. You'll really like him too. Even your person likes him, though he probably won't admit it out loud."

"You like him more than me."

Blinking in surprise, and not having expected that response, Yue took in the sad pout on the other feline's face with more than a little shock. And while his first instinct was to shake his head at the little one's childish behavior, Yue could see that Snow was genuinely hurt at the idea that Hugo might be more important to him than Snow.

"I like him differently from you. He's family, like a littermate." That wasn't exactly true, but it was probably the only way Snow could understand what he meant. "You're my friend."

"Oh." Snow wasn't sure how to take that, especially since this Hugo person looked nothing like a kneazle to him, so how could they be littermates? Snow mostly remembered his own littermates and they'd looked a lot like him. Maybe this one was just a really odd shaped runt? If so he was oddest looking kneazle Snow had ever seen. Though he hadn't seen many so maybe that was it.

Still… "We're bestest friends though, right?"

Now Yue really had to work at it not to shake his head. "Yes, we're friends."

Beaming, Snow purred happily in the one called Louis's arms, enjoying the ear scratching he was getting now. He was still Yue's bestest friend, and that was all that mattered.

)

Knowing that Scorpius would blow a gasket if he knew that Louis had basically commandeered Snow for the afternoon to pet and cuddle with, Albus could only hope that the Slytherin never found out. He knew how sensitive Snow was to being scolded after all, not to mention the fact that Scorpius would blame him for exposing Snow to Louis in the first place. But Snow seemed to love all the attention he was being given and Albus figured the little guy deserved all the affection he could get since Malfoy definitely wasn't the cuddly type unless he was unconscious. Then he could be pretty damn cuddly.

"So why did you call in the calvary? Or us for that matter, since Hugo won't be much help if this involves mischief and mayhem." Louis sent Albus an inquiring look from the chair he was lounging on, Hugo sitting with Albus on his couch with Yue sprawled out on the man's thigh.

Albus would have been jealous, but he got that Hugo was special.

"Actually, I need to consult with you about your Slytherin taming skills."

While their mutual cousin raised an eyebrow Hugo pointed out that he didn't exactly have much expertise with that. It wasn't that he did anything that kept the majority of the Slytherins from leaving him alone. They just did for some reason.

"True, but you made Alexei Dolohov want you and that takes serious skill unless you're a snitch."

"Alexei doesn't want me. You think he wants me? Why? Did he say something? What did he say, Louis?" Ears practically pricking up Hugo's eyes lit up at the idea that his Quidditch obsessed former classmate might be interested in him.

"Sweetie, he's always wanted your fine Weasley ass." Louis smirked at Hugo while Albus nodded in agreement. "He just refuses to admit it or make a move because he's a stubborn prat."

"Are you sure?"

"We're sure." His two cousins told him in tandem.

A moment of consideration and then Hugo nodded in a definitive manner. "All right then. I'll take care of that tonight then. Which Slytherin do you want to tame, Al? The most obvious one would be Malfoy since you wouldn't be consulting us if it was a student you were having problems with. Are you trying to be friends with him or sleep with him?"

While Louis sputtered at the very idea of Albus being interested in Malfoy, Albus smiled at Hugo. "I'm already sleeping with him, which you two need to keep to yourselves, FYI. And what I want is a shot at dating him, but I've no clue how to talk him into giving me a chance there."

Since Louis was still sputtering Hugo asked what Albus had tried already, knowing his cousin well enough to know that he would have made a couple attempts at least before calling them in as reinforcements.

Briefly Albus outlined how he'd gotten Scorpius into his bed in the first place, since that was very much a factor in all this, leading them through his interactions with the Slytherin s all the way up to the chess matches and the fact that he'd left the blond flowers on his desk, which had not gotten him a good reaction since Malfoy apparently intended to cause the sender physical harm when he eventually got ahold of him.

"Are you mad?! Why would you want to date him? He's Malfoy!"

"He is fairly good looking." Hugo pointed out reasonably. "Especially since it looks like he won't be inheriting the Malfoy family's receding hairline problem."

Snorting with laughter, Albus had to shake his head at that, especially when he imagined what Scorpius would say if he heard someone say something like that. Not to mention the man's facial expressions. Priceless.

"This is not a laughing matter, Albus. The fact that you're sleeping with him is…why am I the only one who sees what an epically bad idea this is? Even if he was interested in dating you, and that's a really big if since this is Malfoy we're talking about here, there's still his family to consider here. Your family too, for that matter, considering the fact that he and James get along about as well as two wet cats stuck in a sack. Hell, it's not even his family or the fact that he's a Slytherin that's a problem. It's his…what about him could you possibly like besides his looks and the skills he must have in bed since you're trying to hatch this utterly mental scheme?!"

"I just do. He…fascinates me. I want to be with him in bed and out. Badly." Albus gave them a shrug. "I know he can be mean and nasty and about as friendly as a cactus…but he's interesting and oddly funny at time. Not to mention adorable without meaning to be, though don't ever tell him I said that. Basically I can't explain it except I've never felt like this about a guy before, and I want to see where it goes and to hell with what everyone else might think about it."

"And you really shouldn't talk since you're married to a Goyle and just told me that I should proposition Alexei Dolohov, who is just as bad as Malfoy if not worse, Louis."

"I didn't tell you to proposition him!"

"You told me he wants me. Of course I'm going to proposition him. Who wouldn't, knowing that he wanted them?"

Actually Albus and Louis were both pretty sure that most people wouldn't proposition the infamously bad tempered Slytherin even then, but Albus wasn't about to say so. He left that to Louis.

"You can't hit on Dolohov! Are you two trying to give me stomach ulcers?!"

Both men wincing at the high pitch Louis had hit at the end there, the two shook their heads automatically when he pinned them down with hard glares, one after another, while Yue hissed over the assault on his poor ears. Snow had squeaked and put his paws over his.

Pointing that out to his cousin Albus wasn't surprised when Louis immediately apologized and started to lavish the cat with attention in between shooting them more death glares for traumatizing him with their plans for the currently oblivious Slytherins they intended to seduce.

"Maybe I should have just asked Rorake for advice instead."

"He did land Louis. The man must have serious seduction skills."

Louis gave them looks that stated they'd only further cemented his belief that they'd gone mad with that statement. "I seduced him, thank you very much. If I'd waited for him to realize that we were meant to be together for the rest of our existence he'd have ended up proposing to me on his death bed."

It was on the tip of Albus's tongue to point out that Rorake might have done precisely that just because Louis was just that high maintenance and bossy at times, but given the shocks he'd already delivered Albus figured it was best not to push the blond any further.

"So since you managed to get him to put him to put a ring on it you're obvious the Slytherin dating expert. Or do I have to ask someone else for advice?"

Normally Hugo would never encourage someone to do something just to annoy someone else, but in this case he wanted to help Albus out and calm Louis down at the same time. "You should give him advice just because it will drive James mental when he finds out."

James had spent a great deal of their childhood teasing Louis about what a high maintenance girl he could be, and while the teasing had all been in good fun, and James hadn't done it to be mean, there was no question that Louis rarely missed a chance to take the redhead down a peg either. Helping Albus hook up with Malfoy would definitely drive James up the wall from the mental images alone, much less having to see Malfoy and be nice to him at family gatherings.

"I'll do it."

)

Heading back from the library with a number of books tucked under one arm, his other hand loosely held his wand at his side, Scorpius continued to curse the fact that he'd felt like someone had been stomping over his grave for the last couple hours. This strange sense of foreboding was annoying the bloody hell out of him, especially since Scorpius couldn't imagine what he had to worry about. This was Hogwarts after all, and the odds of him being attacked were fairly low. Sure there were students that stupid around, that went without saying, but it was a Sunday and they should all be busy doing the homework they'd put off until the last minute. Not plotting their future suicides.

But it was that feeling that something that wasn't quite right was coming his way that had Scorpius tensing up when he heard the sound of someone entering the hallway he was currently walking down, the new set of unfamiliar footsteps inspiring a bad feeling that had Scorpius turning to get a look at the man in question.

Huh.

He and Rorake Goyle had been roommates for the seven years they'd been at Hogwarts together and they'd gotten along fairly well despite their disinterest in being friends as their fathers had once been before the Battle of Hogwarts. Personally he hadn't been interested in making friends, and Goyle had only cared about his art and being left alone with his sketchpads. But if he had wanted a friend Scorpius probably would have picked the oversized, quietly observant and intelligent man walking towards him.

Even if the man had been insane enough to marry Louis Weasley.

"Rorake."

"Scorpius."

"What are you doing here?"

The faintest hint of a smile. "Louis and Hugo came here to visit Albus, and now they're all apparently quite pissed and needing to be picked up."

Having had experience with a drunk Albus before, that was how they'd gotten into their present arrangement in the first place after all, Scorpius thought that he was more than happy to let the other man deal with them. Then he considered the possibility that Albus might hit on Goyle while under the influence, and that made him scowl and announce that he was coming too.

"Oh?"

"I want to see what Hugo is like drunk."

"Are you sure about that? He's even more cute and adorable."

Scorpius almost stated that that couldn't possibly be possible, but he caught himself just in time. "Now you've just made me more curious."

The look in Rorake's eyes reminded Scorpius that the man rarely missed a thing, and often saw things that everyone else would miss. And the man did know him better than most, having essentially lived with him for those seven years minus the summers. But since there was no way the man would jump to the conclusion that Scorpius wanted to come so that he could see and keep an eye on Albus, Scorpius figured that he was safe. He'd just have to hope that Albus didn't give them away when he…

Oh crap. That would total happened, and then he'd have to perform memory spells on all of them so that they didn't know that he'd actually lost his mind to the point where he had invited a Potter into his bedroom. And Rorake wasn't someone he wanted to tangle with, especially when you added Louis Weasley to the mix. The blond was vicious when crossed, not to mention the fact that Albus probably wouldn't like the idea of him erasing the memories of his relatives, even for a good reason.

Deciding that he couldn't risk it, especially since it stood to reason that Louis would protect his husband from any advances his drunk cousin might make, Scorpius inclined his head in a nod. "Actually, nevermind. Have fun collecting your Weasleys."

"Okay." A brief pause. "Are you alright?"

Surprised, Scorpius asked him why he was asking.

"Something's off about you. And normally you're pretty unruffable."

That much more surprised that Rorake would care enough to ask, Scorpius was more than a little mortified to realize that he wanted to ask the other man if he might want to get a drink sometime just so that he could have someone to talk to about what was going on with Potter. And yeah Rorake would be his first choice if he decided he wanted a friend, but still…what the fuck was Potter doing to him, making him so weak in the head?

What had he done to deserve this, honestly?


	16. Interesting Talks

Interesting Talks

When the loud knock on his door signaled Rorake's arrival, or at least that's who Albus assumed was visiting unless Scorpius was looking for an afternoon quickie, Albus forced himself to his feet and left Louis and Hugo to their discussion about the former's opinion on the latter's fashion sense. Namely that Louis was once again bemoaning the fact that in his eyes Hugo didn't have any. And since Snow was quite happily sprawled out in the blond's lap, and Yue was sticking close to Hugo, Albus didn't even have to watch out for the two felines as he very carefully made his way to the front door, smiling brightly when saw that Rorake had indeed arrived to pick up Albus's cousins and hopefully supply them with a hangover potion. Thank Merlin. Not that Albus wouldn't have appreciated a visit from Scorpius too, of course, but it would have been pretty damn awkward considering he had guests and couldn't just drag the Slytherin to his bedroom like he wanted to.

And belatedly realizing that he was just standing there like an idiot, and probably grinning at his cousin's husband like one, Albus gave Rorake a rueful look before stepping a little to the side to invite him in, grateful that he could see a potion bottle sticking out of the other man's jacket pocket. Hopefully the contents of it would mean the end of the very nice buzz he had going at the moment, since Merlin only knew what Scorpius would do to him later, if he accidentally blurted out the fact that he was sleeping with him while in Rorake's hearing. He'd had to swear Louis to secrecy, and that had been no small feat.

"Wotcher, Rorake."

"Al." Rorake's lips twitched in amusement as he looked him over. "Don't you know it's dangerous to get that pissed with a Malfoy living right across from you?"

Thinking of all the fun he and Malfoy had had the last time he'd gotten drunk off his ass, Albus had to brace a hand against the doorframe while he laughed his arse off like the drunk idiot he currently was. If only the other man knew. Just the thought of it…Albus didn't know what he enjoyed picturing more. Imagining Rorake's reaction to the news, or remembering his and Scorpius's first night together and the really lovely sex they'd had. They both appealed on entirely different levels, though thinking about Rorake's reaction was probably safer than imagining him and Scorpius having sex. Much less chance of getting a hard on in public.

Also, on second thought, telling Rorake, well that would probably result in mental images Rorake would need permanently removed from his brain via magic ASAP. And Louis would not appreciate anyone else messing with Rorake's head, Albus mused, since he was pretty sure his cousin saw that as his exclusive right.

And thinking that sent Albus into peals of laughter all over again, to the point where he would have toppled to the floor if Rorake hadn't grabbed ahold of his arm to steady him.

"Okay…let's get you inside before you hurt yourself. Then you can tell me what's so funny."

Too busy laughing like an idiot to be insulted, it was all just too funny for words, Albus let himself be tugged down his hallway and then into his parlor where his two were still talking about clothes. Though naturally Louis handed Snow over to Hugo as soon as he spotted Rorake, the blond jumping to his feet to dance over to Rorake with a very loud "Sweetie!".

To keep them all upright Rorake wrapped his free arm around the blond's waist to keep his husband on his feet while Louis messily kissed him, all the while keeping a firm grip on Albus's arm until Albus carefully dropped into a chair for both their sakes.

Naturally Rorake then used his newly freed hand to remove Louis's hand from his arse because Rorake frowned on being groped in public, which Albus found hilarious as well. And breaking off the kiss Rorake sighed, and told his husband that he needed to sit down too.

No one was surprised when Louis's response was to cross his arms belligerently while undressing Rorake with his eyes, his intent to jump his husband very shortly written all over his face.

To save all their sanities, not to mention his dignity, Rorake retrieved the potion from his pocket and uncorking it, holding it out to his husband with a look that ordered Louis to obey. "Since you're all related just take a swig and pass it along. You all have enough liquor in you to kill any germs anyway."

"James used to backwash just so he wouldn't have to share. The prat." Thinking about that was enough to have Albus's smile turning into a pout. His big brother could be so mean to him sometimes.

"Awww. You're so cute when you pout." And so saying Louis took a health gulp of the potion, made a face over the taste, and then handed it off to Hugo. "And now I need someone to get this taste out of my mouth."

And on that note Louis went back to snogging Rorake with plenty of tongue to 'clean' his palate.

Smiling despite the nastiness of the potion he'd just drunk, he was always happy when his family was happy, Hugo brought the potion over to Albus, jerking his chin in the direction of the snogging couple. "They're really bloody cute together, aren't they?"

"They are." Albus agreed with a sigh as he took the potion, the slight green eyed envy he felt because he didn't have a hot husband of his own sobering him up a little even before he took his own dose of the medicine. But that was probably for the best, since he wasn't alone. Not to mention the fact that hangovers really sucked.

So five minutes later the potion had been drunk by those who needed it and Louis was happily cuddled up in Rorake's lap, the man's arms keeping him and his hands in place.

"So exactly why did the three of you decide to drink yourselves stupid so early in the afternoon?"

"It's a long story." Nuzzling his face against Rorake's neck Louis gave a long, drawn out sigh that indicated how much silliness he'd had to suffer because of his cousin. "And we have to take Hugo home with us to babysit. So that he doesn't go to Dolohov's flat and proposition the jackass."

The look Rorake aimed in Hugo's direction was about as surprised as his face ever showed. "You want to proposition Alexei Dolohov?"

"Uh huh."

Rorake didn't even have to think about that one. "You're coming home with us instead."

"Oh come on, you two. Let him. He needs the sex."

"Uh huh, I need the sex."

"You need all your limbs and your brain more." Was Louis's response to that, Rorake nodding in absolute agreement with his husband for once. Hugo was everyone's favorite cousin after all, and above and beyond their love for him, the rest of the family would have their balls for Quidditch practice if they let anything happen to the beloved baby of the family.

Setting the kitties he'd been stroking down on the floor Hugo very carefully got to his feet, weaving a little but showing surprising balance considering he wasn't the most coordinated person when he was sober. "I am going to Dolohov's flat right now. Either you two take me there or I'm…going to get Albus to take me. Or bribe someone else with my awesome puppy dog eyes powers."

"He's so bloody adorable when he's decisive." Albus gave his cousin two thumbs' up.

Rolling his eyes, Louis was of the opinion that both his cousins were idiots and needed to visit St Mungos. As soon as possible.

"Rorake, take Hugo to Dolohov and then take your blond to bed. He needs to de stress a little." Making shooing noises Albus wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, though in the back of his mind he did see their point about Dolohov. So maybe he should…

"I despair of both of you." And on that note Louis announced that they were leaving, and that hopefully by the time they got home his stupid cousins would have their heads out of their asses.

"Okay…but you still haven't told me what else is going on. I'm guessing Dolohov didn't drive you to drink. Not that he couldn't easily."

Everyone agreed that Dolohov could drive a saint to drink. Which none of them were.

"Albus is making bad life choices. And I can't tell you about how stupid he's being because we promised to keep our mouths shut." The look Louis aimed in Albus's direction was more than a little annoyed and bitter.

"Do we need to take you home with us too?"

"Nope. I'm good, Rorake. Promise."

)

Absorbed in the book he was reading, which was the point of reading it since he'd wanted to distract himself from wondering about what Albus was up to, Scorpius was jarred out of his thoughts on the latest plot twist by the sound of someone knocking on his door. Rorake, maybe? Needing help with the three pissed Gryffindors across the way. If so his former roommate had come to the wrong Slytherin for help. And that went double if one of them had thrown up. He was not dealing that, not even for a roommate who hadn't annoyed him much in the years they'd roomed together.

Then it occurred to Scorpius that Potter might have gotten chatty while Rorake was around, and the huge, muscular, and not to be messed with Slytherin might be over here to ask his intentions or warn him off. Oh bugger.

Cursing the idea, and plotting Potter's death if that was the case, Scorpius was debating not answering when he heard footsteps in his hallway, his visitor having apparently decided that the lack of a response was an invitation to come into his rooms without his permission. And there was only one person Scorpius knew was stupid enough to do that so blatantly and think he could get away with it scot free and that was the idiot himself.

And he was right, the man in question appeared moments later looking a little out of it but not staggering, which was a good sign.

"I don't recall giving you permission to enter, Potter."

"We need to have sex right now."

Raising an eyebrow, not that he had any problem with the idea of them having sex in the immediate future, Scorpius smiled a little as he asked where the Gryffindor's little cousins were, just to be a shit and extend Albus's waiting before he gave the other man what he wanted. Sex did sound good after all, especially when he was pretty sure he could make Potter beg him for it.

"Rorake is taking Louis home…after they drop Hugo off at Dolohov's place. Which is why we need to have sex. So get naked, Malfoy."

"What?"

"Look, I'm sober enough to realize now that I just sent Hugo off to either have really bloody amazing sex with Dolohov or I'm going to have to live with Hugo's guilt over having to cause the man serious injury to protect himself because Alexei Dolohov is…Alexei Dolohov. So strip."

And so saying Albus started stripping in front of him while Scorpius just stared at the man he was sleeping with in complete disbelief, trying and pretty much failing to understand what he'd just been told. Because if Albus had just said what he thought he'd said, then…

"Alexei Dolohov?"

"That's what I said, yeah. Now strip or I'm tearing those clothes off you. I'm a desperate man, Malfoy. Don't push me."

"Alexei Dolohov. Seeker playing, Death Eater related, active volcano in human form Alexei Dolohov?"

"Is there any other?"

"How the fuck would you know how he is in bed?" Shit. That wasn't what he'd meant to say. He'd meant to ask what the hell Albus had been thinking, allowing his innocent and naïve little brainiac cousin to proposition someone as dangerous as Alexei Dolohov. The fact that Albus thought the little bastard would be great in bed, or knew it personally, shouldn't matter to him in the slightest and Scorpius hated that he even cared enough to wonder. Other than the fact that it would further highlight that Potter's previous taste in men had been severely lacking of course.

The fact that the Gryffindor was butt naked in front of him didn't even help matters either, because now he was picturing Albus naked with Dolohov and that was disturbing and infuriating on a number of levels.

And Scorpius was so focused on mentally ranting at himself that he missed Potter's movements until he suddenly found his shirt being ripped open, complete with flying buttons. Which was not something he was used to, and it shocked Scorpius all over again to the point that he didn't find his voice again until his belt was being yanked open so that impatient fingers could reach the hooks on his trousers.

"POTTER!"

"I warned you."

And then Potter was fitting their lips together and sticking his tongue into Scorpius's open mouth, the talent the Gryffindor had for using that tongue to make the brains leak out of Scorpius's head out in full force. But Scorpius did have enough brain power to throw himself into the snogging too, diving his fingers into Albus's hair to clench them into the silky strands for better control as he took over.

Which was why Albus was looking good and snogged when Scorpius ended the kiss and transferred his hands to the Gryffindor's shoulders to give them a couple hard shakes. "What were you thinking? Dolohov will kill your cousin with one hand tied behind his back."

"You have no idea what Hugo is capable of. And besides, Alexei is probably fucking his brains out as we speak. Hugo was a man on a mission."

Another shake. "Putting images like that in my head is not going to get you laid, Potter."

A gleam coming into his eyes Albus mock punched Scorpius in the shoulder. "Don't you start thinking about Hugo naked or I'll have to hurt you. Plus I look better."

"I'd rather stun myself silly then think about your cousin naked."

"Good boy."

Tilting his head back Scorpius avoided the kiss Albus had just attempted to lay on him. "Boy?"

"Sexy hot Slytherin I want to fuck me?"

"Better."

Scorpius allowed Albus to kiss him then, though he moved his hands down to take Albus's ass in hand, giving both cheeks a hard squeeze before kneading the flesh there with a great deal of interest. And when he broke off the kiss this time it was to inform Albus that he expected the Gryffindor to make the wrecked shirt up to him by letting him fuck him into his mattress. Repeatedly. Until it was time for them to head to supper.

"Oh I promise I'll…oh shit." The last two words were spoken in a near whisper, Albus's eyes going huge behind his glasses as he stared at Scorpius with growing horror etching itself into his features as some realization hit him. "Oh hell I'm so…so sorry. FUCK!"

A feeling of dread overtaking him, this could not be good, Scorpius own eyes narrowed as he moved his hands up so that he could wrap his arms around Albus's waist to insure that the other man couldn't get away from him until he was good and ready. He had a feeling whatever had Albus freezing up had to do with him in a way he was not going to like one little bit.

"What did you do?"

Shoulders slumping, Albus looked down at his feet for several moments before he finally lifted his head again to meet Scorpius's gaze. "I broke my word. I didn't mean to, I forgot,…but that's no excuse. I'm sorry, Scorpius." A hard wince and another deep breath. "I told Hugo and Louis we're sleeping together."

It took a moment for that to sink in. "YOU DID WHAT?!"

"I didn't…I wanted their advice on how to get you to go out with me. I was so focused on that that I didn't think about what I…I mean I made them both promise not to tell anyone, and they won't because Hugo would rather cut off his own arm than betray a confidence, and I have so much dirt on Louis he wouldn't dare blab it out, but I promised not to tell anyone about us and I did. Fuck I'm sorry."

Albus was talking so fast that Scorpius was barely able to follow what the idiot was saying, but truthfully his thoughts were so hung up on what Albus had said first, that the rest was sort of going over his head as the other man continued to ramble on about how sorry he was.

"Shut up a minute. What do you mean, you want to go out with me? You don't want to go out with me. Or are you trying to distract me from killing you for blabbing to your idiot cousins?" Because that made a hell of a lot more sense to him than Albus going to them for advice because the idiot wanted to get him to go out with him.

"Please. I'm fucking naked, Malfoy. If I just wanted to distract you, I'd be offering you the sexual favor of your choice or blowing you right now." Albus smirked at him for a moment, before the hint of a smile faded away as reality sank in once more. "Though I'm guessing you want me to get dressed and get the bloody hell out of here now, right?"

Scorpius took a moment to allow himself to consider the unbelievable idea that he'd fucked Potter's brains out to the point where the stupid Gryffindor might actually be entertaining the idea that in some parallel universe they could ever date. Unbelievable. Only he would be that stupid. As if they could ever go on dates or share a space or even do nice things for each other on a regular basis.

And it was those thoughts that led to another one that had Scorpius staring at the Gryffindor in shock; his arms tightening least the little shit get away before he got some real answers.

"You were the one who sent me those flowers!"

Scorpius's jaw dropped at the sheepish nod Albus gave him.

"Are you out of what little mind you have, Potter?"

A long pause, and then Albus answered him with a hint of a smile again. "You do realize you're basically saying that I would have to be totally mental to want to be with you, right? You shouldn't be so hard on yourself."


	17. Humans Are Stupid

Humans Are Stupid

The less than impressed look Scorpius aimed in his direction had Albus mentally calling himself an idiot, especially since he really shouldn't be trying to tease or banter with the Slytherin when he'd seriously fucked up and broken his promise to Scorpius about keeping their arrangement to himself. And in all honesty he couldn't even really blame the alcohol either, because really he'd just been selfish. He'd been so focused on what he wanted that he'd pushed all the reasons he shouldn't be asking for help to the corner of his mind. He needed to apologize sincerely here and try to fix things, or he would deserve Scorpius kicking him out of his room while he was still starkers.

"Sorry. Sorry for what I said and the crappiness of m previous apology. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I broke my word, and I'm sorry that I did it for selfish reasons."

The way Scorpius's jaw dropped a little, paired with the look in the blond's eyes, made it clear that the proper apology had thrown him for enough of a loop that Scorpius was speechless. And that took some serious doing where this Malfoy was concerned.

Hoping he looked as sincere as he felt, Albus very tentatively reached out to lightly wrap his arms around the blond's waist, pulling him in until they were chest to chest as Albus maintained eye contact. Because yeah, he wasn't above using a little skin manipulation. He was dealing with a Slytherin here after all. "I really did tell them because I wanted their advice. The flowers didn't go over so well and…well they couldn't exactly help me if they didn't know who I fancied, now could they? Though it was still wrong for me to have done it."

"You and I can't date." It was said factually, like it was as much a given as the sun rising and setting every day.

Naturally it was on the tip of Albus's tongue to point out that technically they couldn't have children, and were a lot less closely related than the majority of Scorpius's families had been when they'd married, but he was in the dog house at the moment and knew it.

"Just because our families don't always get along that-"

"They never get along, Potter."

"Well my dad saved your dad's life a couple of times, and yours…might have…almost…well at least your grandmother sorta saved dad's life once even if it was for totally selfish reasons."

"You've lost what little brains you had."

Not liking where this was going, or the fact that Scorpius was showing zero interest in dating him, Albus tried another tact that usually worked. "Since when do you let your family dictate who you are and who you date? Worried what Daddy will say?"

If looks could kill….

"I'm just saying, I'm willing to look my dad in the eye and tell him we're dating."

Narrowed grey eyes flashed with derision. "You're bluffing."

"Am not. Wanna bet?"

"Please. You're half Weasley. He has to be used to your messed up sense of humor and take it for the joke you'd mean it. Or in this case to win a bet." Scorpius crossed his arms definitively, his body language screaming cocksureness. "At the end of the day though, you're Harry Potter's son. Everyone in the Magical World knows you, and they'll judge our ass to their last breathes if they knew you were sleeping with me, much less if we were actually dating. And my family gets enough hate mail as it is without me 'corrupting' Harry Potter's baby boy."

"You get hate mail? I mean aside from the ones from your poor students and their often justifiably outraged parents?"

The look Scorpius gave him now made it clear that yes, he thought Albus was completely stupid for even asking that question. Which natural made Albus want to have some strong words with those writer letters who had nothing better to do than harass his man for things that had happened way before Scorpius was born. The hate mail for his teaching style he got, but the rest was just bollocks. Scorpius wasn't warm and fuzzy like Snow, but he was still a person with feelings. Buried deep behind the man's scorn and derision towards the human and…well towards everyone, really, was a heart like everyone else's.

"Well I don't give a flying fuck what anyone thinks about us being together, and I'll tell them so. And okay, I won't say that to my family, but they'd only have to see you once in a while anyway. Temporary truces can be held for a few hours at a time." Albus hoped. James would struggle there, but his mum and Lily would keep his idiot brother in line for him. Once they got used to the idea themselves.

Seeing uneasiness entering into Scorpius's eyes, suggesting that it was finally sinking into the blond's thick skull that Albus was dead serious about this, Albus felt a little hope, since at least the jerk was thinking about it seriously now rather than flippantly. Though it was a little insulting to see how the idea that Albus was serious about wanting to date him was messing with the Slytherin's head something serious. It wasn't like they hadn't been sleeping together for a while now. And they'd actually slept together too, not just sex. You'd think the possibility would have at least entered his mind at some point.

But getting mad over that wouldn't help, so Albus opted not to say anything to keep the conversation going, figuring that he'd have more luck having an adult conversation with his man if he kept this talk as adult as possible. He'd make Scorpius pay for not thinking about him as date material later. When he wasn't trying to land solidly in Scorpius's good books, or at least as close to that as one could ever get when it came to his prickly Malfoy.

"I know I'm that good in bed, Potter, but thinking to keep me around by asking me out is just mad, even for a Gryffindor."

Ah. Being a complete and total arse. How skilled Malfoy men were in that regard.

So Scorpius was going to be predictable? He'd be unpredictable.

"Yeah. You're fucking amazing in bed, no pun intended. Best I've ever had. And you're smart and snarky, and I don't know why, but I'm starting to find your asseholeness kinda adorable. You're a puzzle I can't solve, and I genuinely am asking you to go out with me here. Please."

Yup, Scorpius had definitely not expected the honesty, and was actually looking a little slack jawed with shock now. And when the Slytherin did respond, there was a hint of vulnerability that had Albus's immediate attention as he took a few steps back from him.

"It would never work. No."

Suddenly feeling as naked on the inside as he was on the outside, damn but he wished he had his clothes on, Albus forced himself to move forward and reach out, flinching when Scorpius flinched a little in response to his touch, though the Slytherin didn't pull away as Albus's fingers just gently wrapped around Scorpius's arms.

"If you throw out the rest of the world and what they think…would you be interested in dating me?"

"There's no point in answering that. We aren't the only two people left on the planet, Potter."

"But if we were…?"

"Then you'd be the only one around to shag, now wouldn't you? I'd be stuck with you."

Okay. Yeah. Ouch. Line crossed and point made. Time to get out and regroup because a cornered, vulnerable Malfoy was a dangerous thing, Albus told himself. Especially when you were talking about this particular one. His Slytherin was fighting to verbally wound, and this was Scorpius just getting started.

"Alright, then. Even a Gryffindor can get a clue."

Albus managed a rueful smile as his hands dropped away, and then he turned and gave Scorpius his back so that he didn't have to hide his real thoughts and feelings as he walked over to collect his clothes and started getting dressed again.

For both their sakes Albus ignored the very pointed looks Scorpius was aiming in his direction while staying stubbornly silent. And dressed soon enough, Albus glanced over his shoulder to say good night, and then headed out without being called back.

)

Prancing down the hallway on his way to his rooms, Snow couldn't have been happier even if Yue had sort of ditched him earlier. But he understood, his friend had sensed that his person needed him, and Snow wasn't even worried about Albus because whatever was wrong with the nice human Yue would fix. He had absolute faith in the awesomeness of his bestest friend in the whole wide world. Plus it had been a very nice day because he got to meet Louis and Hugo and Rorake. They'd all petted him really good, and he'd really liked the way Louis had petted him and told him how cute and adorable he was. It wasn't right to disagree with one's person, Snow knew, but secretly he'd decided that his own person was wrong about Louis. Louis was good people.

And since he was in such a good mood Snow decided to break out into song as he stepped through his front door, belting it out as loud as he could as he headed in to see if his person was home or still visiting Yue's person.

"I feel fluffy, oh so fluffy  
I feel fluffy and puffy and bright  
And I pity any kneazle who isn't me tonight

I feel petted, oh so petted  
It's alarming how petted I feel  
And so fluffy that I hardly can believe I'm real."

"Oi! Furball! Get in here!"

Stopping in his tracks, his eyes going wide, Snow did a full body quiver of delight that his person was calling him. Wanted to see him! This was the bestest day ever!

Running as fast as his little legs could carry him in the direction of his owner's bedroom, Snow barely registered the fact that his person looked even paler than normal. The fact that the man was leaning over so that he could scoop Snow up was all Snow cared about as he made a beeline for the man's hands, making happy sounds that turned to a sorta squawk when he got jerked around a little as Scorpius flopped onto his back on his bed and deposited Snow on his chest. But his person's hand came up to hold him where he was, and that made Snow happy enough to rub up against his person's fingers while purring away to let him know how much he loved him and how happy he was.

"Why are you so fucking happy all the time? I treat you awful. I call you Fluffball for fuck sakes."

Snow wasn't sure what a couple of the words meant, and he'd have to ask Yue what they meant tomorrow, but he could see that his person was upset and that he didn't like.

And since he wanted his person to be as happy as he was, Snow wiggled until he was out of Scorpius's hold and quickly leapt up his human's chest until he could snuggle under the blond's chin, rubbing his fur there as he purred away, trying to convey the fact that he loved his person more than anyone else in the world. Even more than Yue, and Yue was his bestest friend and the greatest kneazle to ever live. But his person was his person, and Scorpius came first in Snow's mind.

"Ugh. What am I going to do with you, seriously?" A loud sigh, and then his person was relaxing a little under him, his hand coming up to gently rest over Snow in a way that made the feline really happy.

"What is he thinking? I mean really. He's completely lost his mind. Us? Dating? A couple? There are people who spent decades around Dementors who are saner than he is, if he thinks that could happen. Everyone would be against us even if I did want to date him, which I don't. You're luck you're an animal. Dating sucks."

Since his person couldn't understand him Snow made a questioning sound, needing more info so Yue could explain this all to him later.

"When you date someone, seriously date them anyway, you have to do lots of crappy things. You have to meet their stupid family and friends, and hang out with them whether you want to or not. You have to do things they like to do even if you don't want to, and you have to lie to them when they ask stupid questions about their appearance or something they've made you because if you don't, your ass is sleeping on the couch until you grovel like some weak spined Hufflepuff. And Scorpius Malfoy does NOT grovel. I'll shave my bloody head first."

Dating didn't sound fun at all, Snow silently agreed as he gave Scorpius more nuzzles, glad his person wasn't doing something so bad. Though what was wrong with sleeping on the couch? He did that all the time.

"The sex is not worth the hassle, and he's nuts if he thinks…well no, I'm fucking amazing in bed just like he said, but I can find someone else to shag easily enough, no dating needed. He'll find some other idiot to sleep with soon enough and…FUCK."

Jumping, and smacking up into his person's chin as a result of his person's harsh growl, Snow gave Scorpius some loving licks of apology and more nuzzling, the body under him even tenser than before while his person radiated unhappiness. Snow did his best to make the human feel better, but he didn't have a lot of success. His person needed Albus, Snow knew instinctively, but he was pretty sure that was who his person had had a fight with.

Hopefully they'd make up soon.

)

Staring at his human, who was currently in his Animagi form so that they could communicate with each other, Yue was tempted to draw back his paw and bitch slap the idiot across the face. Seriously. Not only had he had to listen to the man's sob story about what had happened after the moron had left to go jump Malfoy, which had been about as enjoyable as listening to Nearly Headless Nick bitch and complain about being excluded from the Headless Hunt, but now his person was actually looking for sympathy from him.

"Of course he said no. He's Malfoy!"

"You're supposed to be on my side!"

"Real friends tell friends when their heads are up their asses."

"I'd rather have Scorpius up my ass." Was Albus's bad tempered, decidedly pouty muttering in response to that, Yue wincing at the sentiment since he really didn't need a visual, thank you very much. "And it's not like I wasn't sincere or pretending like it wouldn't be hard to do. I KNOW everyone's going to think I'm mental and try and drag me to St. Mungo's to have my head examined. How can he not think we'd be worth that though? The sex alone is fucking worth it!"

"If you start talking about your sex life I'm leaving." Line in the sand. "And it's the fact that you gave up the way you did that makes you so stupid. You basically proved him right."

"He said no! What was I supposed to do, slip him a love potion?"

"No. What you should have done was use what brains you have to realize this is Scorpius Malfoy you're dealing with. Expecting him to behave and act like any of the other blokes you've dated in the past is the height of stupidity. He's the sort that expect everything on his terms and—"

"I didn't say that I'm in love with him!"

Yue hoped the look he sent in Albus's direction conveyed just how stupid and in denial the man was before he continued like his person had never interrupted. "—he's never been involved with someone like you either. He's probably never had a real relationship, period. And you folding like a deck of cards like this isn't going to convince him that you have the balls to take him on long term. Grow a set, Potter, and start plotting and planning like a Slytherin."

Albus opened his beak and then closed it, a silence descending as Yue could almost hear the gears starting to turn as the Gryffindor realized what Yue was telling him. Namely that anyone who gave up so easily on something they so clearly wanted didn't deserve to have it in the first place. All the best things in life were work, and worth fighting for.

It was a good ten minutes later before Albus finally spoke, his voice holding a hint of steel. "He isn't going to take it well, me not taking no for an answer. And no means no but…do you think he wants me to fight for him?"

"Would I be encouraging you if I didn't? And if my willingness to be stuck living with him for the rest of my life isn't proof of our bond, I don't know what the hell is."

In a flash Albus was back in his human form, and just that quickly Yue found himself scooped up into the man's arms and hugged hard, which he tolerated with a sigh.

The things he did for his person. Really.

)

Having finished his lunch the next day, not that he'd had the appetite to each much of anything, Scorpius left the Great Hall with a dark storm cloud all but hanging over his head as he headed down the hallway on his way back towards his classroom. Around him students gave him a wide berth, which Scorpius hardly noticed until he heard his name being shouted rather loudly in a young, female voice. Having a student actually yell at him was a rare enough occurrence that Scorpius not only didn't ignore it, but actually turned around to watch as the students behind him moved off to the side to clear the way for the girl marching towards him with a smile on her face that instantly had his Slytherin senses tingling.

A Gryffindor. Seventh year, if he wasn't mistaken, and not one of his students currently. Her grades hadn't been good enough to make it into his NEWT level classes. He couldn't recall her name or think of a reason why she would want to talk to him, and he was still trying to figure out what she could be up to as she came to a stop in front of him, her hand coming up to draw his attention to the fact that she was holding a…red rose?

"It's from Professor Potter." She told him with a huge grin, tucking the rose into his robe pocket when he just gaped at her. "Bye."

And on that note the student sauntered off while Scorpius stared at her in shock, everyone else staring at him the same way.

What the hell?!


	18. Potters and Malfoys

Potters and Malfoys

When he got his hands on Albus Potter Scorpius planned to wring the damn Gryffindor's scrawny little neck with extreme prejudice and pleasure. What else he was going to do to him, well that changed by the minute these days. Previously it had changed hourly or daily, but as the days went by without him managing to get his hands on the little shit Scorpius's plans for Albus changed and got decidedly more creative and violent. Because really, at this point, it was getting really hard to remember all the reasons why killing the bastard wasn't an option.

Through the students, owls, and faculty, Scorpius had received flowers, candy, toys for Snow, and other thoughtful little gifts that normally he would have appreciated getting from a family member or friend, but since they were from Potter as bait to bribe him into dating him the gifts just sent his blood pressure through the roof. Scorpius felt like a bloody pressure cooker really, one that had yet to let off any steam BECAUSE HE COULDN'T FIND POTTER!

It had been nearly two weeks since the first rose, and Scorpius hadn't seen the other man once. He went to the man's classes, his rooms, looked for him in the hallways and the Great Hall, and yet hadn't once caught more than a glimpse of Albus, the other man gone seconds later before he could grab him. The same went for the Gryffindor's cat, who still came around to play with Snow occasionally and could be seen out and about the castle as usual. His efforts to use the kneazle to kind Albus had proven pointless, not to mention he was pretty sure the damn thing had been leading him on wild goose chases for its own amusement.

The smirks that the creature had aimed in his direction more than once had certainly suggested that. Damn its hide.

Albus was showing up for his classes, Scorpius knew that, but every time he tried to ambush him he wasn't there. The infamous family invisibility cloak coming into play. Especially judging by the giggling and whispering of the students as they pretended ignorance or stated that their teacher had been called away and they were waiting for him to return, the fact that they were lying so obvious they might as well have had liar tattooed on their foreheads.

Oh yeah, the students all seemed to find it so fucking hilarious now that one of their Care of Magical Creatures professors was courting him. At first the majority of them had all just been stunned and disbelieving, no more able to wrap their minds around what Albus was doing than he could. But after nearly two weeks of all this, the students had gotten over their reservations and were now blatantly rooting for Potter. They were volunteering to deliver his gifts in droves, it seemed, and none seemed remotely afraid of him anymore.

And their fellow teachers. They were even a part of this as added insult to the injuries. Even Hagrid and Longbottom had been talked into helping Albus, both delivering free, hard to get potion materials to him with expressions that made it clear that they'd never though they'd find themselves in this situation, but had resigned themselves to helping Albus because they loved him. And were possibly secretly amused by it at this point, like all the others.

How the fuck was this his life?

And as he sat through another breakfast without Albus at the table, the house elves were probably feeding him on the side in time honored Potter and Weasley tradition, Scorpius found a letter in pink stationary ceremoniously dropped off beside his plate, the return address in the corner that of Rita Skeeter.

That could not be good.

At the start of the week he'd heard through the Hogwarts grapevine that Rita Skeeter had apparently gotten wind of Albus's courtship of him, and naturally she'd published an article about it in her bimonthly newsletter, the one she'd started a few years ago after the Prophet had gotten sued one too many times over her shoddy reporting and fired her. According to her Albus's courtship of him was proof that he was living up to his names having been, in Skeeter's opinion, been named after two two faced men who she'd written scathing biographies about. Apparently in the article she'd very heavily hinted that Albus was a dark wizard in disguise, and that the Chosen One had had to bribe the current Headmaster to put Albus in Gryffindor so that no one would know that he was really a treacherous and devious Slytherin in disguise.

To cover her ass, and appease the Potter supporters among her readers, Skeeter had also done some speculating about him having slipped Albus a love potion, with him currently pretending to spurn Potter's advances now so that no one would suspect him later. The rest of the article was a lot of other garbage that Scorpius had been expecting people to say if word of Albus's feelings towards him became known, including a brief summary of numerous crimes attributed to his family, true or completely fabricated ones. Which of course would mean there would be backlash his family would have to suffer through, Scorpius knew, as that was always the case when either war was in the news or facing an anniversary.

And if that wasn't bad enough, two days after the Skeeter article an article had appeared on the front of the Daily Prophet, written by Ginny Potter. The just of said article might have revolved around Mrs. Potter's thought concerning Rita Skeeter and her ability to do her job, as well as her displeasure in how often Skeeter thought she could slander her family, but all that had been followed by the statement that her son could date anyone he wanted to and anyone who didn't like that could go fall down one of the many crevices in the Gringotts vaults. She and her husband apparently wholeheartedly supported Albus's relationship with Scorpius, should he decided to start dating their son, and that was the family's final word on the matter.

Not surprisingly, James hadn't been quoted, and as for Little Potter, well Scorpius figured the evil little redhead would be just fine with it just because Lily Potter had a Weasley's love of chaos and twisted sense of humor.

He hadn't heard through the gossip grapevine about any more articles written by either woman or about him and Albus in any way, but now this one had deliberately been sent to him by one of the most notorious 'reporters' in Long, which his instincts said did not bode well for him.

As more letters dropped down in front of Scorpius, he was getting plenty of mail these days from people who though they had the right to tell him what he should do where Potter was concerned, Scorpius just shuffled them all together with gloved hands and as had become his habit he stuffed all of them into the cloth sack hanging off his chair. He only read the ones from Potter's or his own family, he had more important things to do than the death threats or accusations he had no doubt were scrawled across the many sheets of parchment being sent his way. His family's response had been pretty much what he'd expected, though his mother had spoken for both her and his father so his father was the only one not to personally send him a letter. Potter's family…well the ones that had sent him letters could make it clear that they would accept him dating Albus all they wanted, but he didn't believe it for a minute.

And after reading those letters joined the rest of the mail in the rubbish bin.

But in regards to Skeeter's letter…he would probably read that later, Scorpius decided, just in case the bitch was actually thinking about writing another article about him or worse, was looking for an interview with him. Better to know she was coming than be ambushed.

"If I have to put up with her on top of everything else I don't care if they give me life. I will kill him."

)

Having been informed by nearly the entire faculty that Scorpius had been issuing death threats where he was concerned over breakfast, Albus wisely continued to avoid the blond like dragon pox, though that was getting really annoying for a number of reasons. And that wasn't even factoring in how much he missed Scorpius in general. Add that in and it was a struggle not to start behaving like Scorpius and snapping at everyone he came into contact with. But it wasn't the rest of the world's fault Scorpius wasn't letting him woe him into a relationship, so he was trying to act as normal as possible when he was around other people.

Of course when he was alone, without other people encouraging him, Albus tended to start thinking that Scorpius really wasn't interested, and it wasn't just their family's history and what everyone else would think keeping the blond from giving him a chance. Maybe Scorpius had only been interested in the sex and he was deluding himself into thinking it could be more. Maybe he really was just a convenient piece of arse Scorpius had decided to make use of since he was handy and willing.

And okay, it probably also didn't help that he was currently surrounded by all the fucking mail he'd been getting since that damn Rita Skeeter had written her article about him and Scorpius. A letter count most likely only made ten times worse by his mum's article, since her response had put the backs up of a number of Skeeter's fans. They might be small in numbers, but they were all too much like her when it came to their need to express themselves in writing.

And even overlooking the mail he knew to be from Skeeter's fans, Albus had gotten two Howlers for either 'shaming' or 'injuring his father grievously' by consorting with the son of a Death Eater. From people he'd never met. He had sixty two letters telling him that in their opinion he had no business dating a Malfoy, like they had every right to tell him how to live his life, and most of them had thrown his family in his face repeatedly by reminding him of all they'd suffered and lost and how forcing them to accept Scorpius into their family would be a kind of torture. Torture he would be inflicting on them deliberately by pursuing a Malfoy.

James's letter had been far from encouraging too, though not vicious in nature, but it was still his brother telling him that he'd lost his mind and lecturing him about letting himself be led around by his cock, since obviously he wasn't using his brains.

If he hadn't made his whole family promise that they wouldn't confront or pick fights with Scorpius before he'd spilled the beans Albus didn't even want to think about how much worse this could be. As it was Scorpius had apparently not asked his own family not to get involved, since Albus had received multiple letters from the Malfoy and Greengrass families. Scorpius's paternal grandparents had made it clear that he would never be welcome into their family, and that he should stop maligning their family's name by suggesting that a member of their line would ever get involved with a Potter. Scorpius other grandmother in her letter had been much nicer, in so much as she made it clear he should stop pursuing her grandson for his own good, but at least there was no threats to his person or insults against his character or family. She was doing this for his own good apparently, and at this point Albus wasn't really going to argue with her on that. Her daughter's letter had been much the same.

Draco Malfoy had yet to send him a letter of any sort as far as Albus knew for sure, though his left hand was also currently bandaged up because one of the anonymous letters had been brushed with a powder beforehand and had delivered severe chemical burns when he'd gotten the stuff on his skin. Not being a complete idiot or a glutton for pain he'd had the burns treated, but they still looked pretty nasty and hurt like a bitch without the numbing cream he'd been given.

Albus was pretty sure that his own dad had mentioned that Scorpius's father had been pretty skilled in Potions and Herbology back in the da. And whatever the powder had been, no one here had recognized it.

Running fingertips over the bandages, and wincing at the pain even that faint touch caused him, Albus dropped his hand away in resignation. He was going to have to suffer through putting the cream on soon, before it really started to hurt.

Turning his attention back to reading one of his latest letters, the amount of mail he was getting was starting to go down but there was still a heck of a lot of it, Albus sighed over the fact that the writer was encouraging him to marry Scorpius, but only because that would be the official end to the Malfoy line. Lovely.

Crushing it up in his good hand Albus tossed it in the direction of the already rather full rubbish bin, his throw a little off as he heard the nearby door opening. Since he was being hunted Albus's gaze immediately veered in that direction, though he wasn't worried since he'd barred Scorpius specifically from entering the room. A visiting house elf was far more likely, or Uncle Neville since this was the Room of Requirement he was staying in.

But no…definitely not Uncle Neville.

Lurching to his feet Albus couldn't have picked his jaw up off the ground if he'd had the thought to try, which he didn't since all Albus could seem to do was stare at the sight of Draco Malfoy walking towards him.

Fuck. This couldn't be good.

"Reading your fan mail?"

"More like hate mail." Albus blurted out, his brain more occupied trying to decide if he needed to make a desperate grab for the wand he'd very foolishly left out of reaching distance on a nearby table. But if he threw himself in that general direction he might stand a chance of getting it before Scorpius's father murdered him and then hid his body in what was left of the Room of Hidden Things. That room was as much this man's domain as The Room of Requirement was Neville's.

"That how you hurt your hand?"

Instinctively cradling said hand against his chest, Albus nodded cautiously. "Yeah. Some sort of powder rubbed off on my skin and burned me. I'm probably going to go see a healer at St. Mungo's tomorrow, since no one around here seems to know how to treat it."

"Ah. You got a letter from Dahlia Brown."

"You know her?"

"In a sense." The older man's gaze shifted off to the side, no longer meeting Albus's. "Her daughter, Lavender, was in my year. She dated your Uncle Ron for a while. Greyback killed her during the Battle of Hogwarts. Her mother never got over it and has a…nasty habit of sending hate mail to people she blames for her daughter's death." Moving in closer, Draco lifted up both hands to show off the fact that there were what looked like barely healed burn scars on both hands. "I hadn't gotten one from her in years, ever since she and my wife had a little chat about her little hobby, but hearing that my son had corrupted you and therefore caused harm to the Chosen One had her falling back on old habits, it seems."

"Oh. I'm sorry. That you were hurt because of me."

The silence that followed his words had Albus tempted to fidget, especially since Scorpius's father was looking him straight in the eyes again, but the older man broke the tension before Albus could make a complete idiot of himself by asking him to remove the bandages so that he could see how bad the burns were.

Decades of training and warnings, of being told the stories and warned about what Death Eaters were capable of doing even to children flittered across Albus's mind, only sheer Gryffindor pride keeping him from backing up at even the thought of Draco getting near his wounded hand. Moments ago he'd been entertaining the thought that maybe he had this man and his skill with potions and such to thank for his burned hand after all, and now here Draco Malfoy was…watching him with a knowing look in his eyes, making no move to touch or try and force the issue. Looking at Albus like he knew every thought going through his head. Had expected it.

And thinking about that, really thinking about it and everything everyone, including Scorpius, had said about how the world was, how their families were, Albus winced hard, recognizing his own prejudices at work. Just one of the many hurdles in his way to getting Scorpius. The damn things kept popping up all over the place. Though this was one he could start clearing away if he was willing to trust a little.

Decision made Albus took the steps necessary to bring them close enough, Albus carefully removed the bandages and then with another instinctive pause that belayed his nerves, Albus held out his injured hand for Draco's inspection.

When Draco's hand took his Albus jolted not because it hurt, but because of the way Draco had touched him. The man's palm was much softer than his father's, but the feeling the gentle touches inspired brought to mind a paternal touch. One that would do no unnecessary harm to him.

"This needs treating now, or the wounds will only get bigger and scar more deeply. The powder she concocted is quite thorough." Fishing the bandage wrappings Albus still held in his other hand Draco wrapped the burned hand up again with more skill than Albus had before meeting his gaze again. "My son's stores should have everything we need to treat it. Come."

Tripping over his feet for a moment, Albus automatically started to follow the man who had given him his back and was walking towards the door he'd come through moments ago. "He'll kill me if I mess with his stuff!"

"I'll be messing with them, not you."

Staring at the door now being held open for him, Albus covertly pinched himself, and then while that pain registered asked the question that was circling around in his head like they'd been caught up in a hurricane or tornado.

"Why would you help me?"

"Because you matter to my son."

And having dropped his bomb, so to speak, Draco walked through the door, Albus suddenly very eager to follow after him. Because after Mr. Malfoy had thrown out bait like that…well how could he resist?


	19. Healing Some Wounds

Healing Some Wounds

Feeling about as coordinated and eager as an overgrown puppy chasing after its owner, which was a really embarrassing parallel for his mind to make, Albus nonetheless bolted out of the Room of Requirement and down the hallway to quickly match his strides up with Scorpius's father, determined to learn just why the older man thought he was important to Scorpius. Because at this point Albus was willing to admit that he desperately needed every crumb of encouragement he could get given the quantity of death threats the younger Malfoy was apparently making on a daily basis these days.

And at least Scorpius hadn't been lurking outside the door, having used his father as bait to lure him out of the safety of his hiding place. Which was a possibility Albus realize he really should have considered before leaving the room now that he was out in the open without anyone to back him up. But it was just him and Mr. Malfoy for the moment, and probably would be for the majority of their trip through the castle since it was dinner time.

No living witnesses to see them together…but there were plenty of portraits he could count on, Albus reminded himself. And really nevermind that, especially since it was too late now, away. Plus he had more important things to think about, namely voicing the obvious question in response to the older man's earlier statement.

"Did Scorpius actually tell you that he cares about me? Because everyone I've talked to has been pretty adamant that he's furious with me. I've actually started to feel like one of those creepy stalkers that should have their arses kicked because they don't know how to take no for an answer. I know how to take no for an answer, I swear, and my intention are…well not honorable, but I really do want us to be a proper couple and not just fucking around on the side. And -FUCK, I shouldn't have said that! Sorry!"

Albus could feel his whole face go as red as his mom's hair.

But rather than any of the violent or horrified responses Albus's mind quickly conjured up, Mr. Malfoy's lips actually quirked a little in a hint of amusement.

"Breathe, Potter."

Oddly enough being called Potter in that very Malfoy tone of voice reassured Albus, and calmed him down enough that he was soon reduced to simply being overly flushed in the cheeks as they continued to walk towards the nearest set of stairs.

"You asked me how I know that Scorpius cares about you."

"Uh, yeah, I did."

"The answer to your question is…you're not in St. Mungo's or the Medical Wing here. Over the course of this week you've made my son the talk of the Wizarding World, subjecting him to endless questions, speculations, and no doubt ridicule and threats from various parties. An intensely private person, you've made his private life public and dragged him into the spotlight against his will. And yet he hasn't so much as harmed a hair on your head, has he? Not that any damage to your hair would show. It's just like your father's."

Running a self-conscious hand through his typically messy hair, Albus had to smile even as the man's description of what he'd done hit him hard in the gut.

Not to mention the small, ingrained impulse to make a crack about the fact that at least Potters had hair and didn't have to worry about premature baldness, but that Albus easily stifled that voice since he didn't have a death wish, thank you very much.

And since witty comments weren't going to help him here, and the guilt trip he was putting himself through was pretty intensive, Albus had no choice but to return to thinking about how screwed he was where Scorpius was concerned, and how he really had buggered this all up royally after all. Dammit.

"Wipe that look off your face, Potter. It doesn't suit you. And you're a Gryffindor, you're supposed to be too foolhardy and idiotic to realize the danger you're in until it's too late."

"Ahhhhhh."

Shaking his head slightly, Draco Malfoy paused in front of the stairs, angling his body so that he was facing Albus, his eyes hard and for the first time hinting at the threat he might still pose. "Are you going to keep fighting for him or not? Because I have absolutely no interest in helping you if you've done all this only to falter now. I won't have my son's emotions played with that way."

"I'm not playing with his feelings!" Albus immediately argued, furious at even the suggestion that he'd put them both through this week for no good reason. "But just because he hasn't killed me doesn't mean he bloody well cares, you know. And I've been hiding from him!"

"And you really think he couldn't have caught you if he wanted to?" The look the Slytherin aimed in Albus's direction made it clear he thought him mad if he actually believed that. "Are you really going to stand there, Potter, and telling me that someone as intelligent, cunning, and vindictive as my son couldn't have hunted you down this week? Tell me that despite the fact that the Room of Requirement was the first place I thought to look for you, and I don't even know you nearly as well as he does. And on top of that, there the fact that you're still attending your classes, and there are plenty of threats he could have made that would have had you coming out of your bolt hole willing, to spare someone else? Really?"

"He has tried to find me." Albus began hesitantly, though the words sounded unsure and lame to his own ears. Because really…did he really think he could outwit Scorpius for this long? Hadn't he gone into this preparing to get caught and made to pay fairly early on?

"Oh I'm sure he tried just hard enough to tell himself he'd tried. This is my son we're talking about here. He never does anything the easy way."

Following the man down the stairs, and mulling over everything Scorpius's father was saying and implying, Albus didn't know what to think anymore which just frustrated him that much more. One minute Mr. Malfoy seemed to be implying that he was making Scorpius miserable courting him the way he was, and then the next he seemed to be encouraging him to keep doing what he was doing unable he wore Scorpius down. And was he really suggesting that Scorpius might fancy him in return, and this was just a case of Scorpius protesting too much? What the hell?

Fuck but this was making his head hurt. And he didn't know what to think or believe anymore.

"So you're saying that he fancies me…but doesn't want to admit it. Even though I'm annoying the hell out of him."

"You're a Potter. You'll be annoying the hell out of him when you both have one foot in the grave."

"Not helping."

A loud sigh. "If you want an easy life you should stay far away from my son."

"I don't want easy, I want HIM."

"Then prepare to work for your prize."

The best response Albus could come up with was to growl his frustration.

Scorpius's father glanced over at him for a moment before staring straight ahead as he spoke. "Do you know why my wife spoke to Dahlia Brown about what she was doing?"

Blinking at the sudden change in topic, Albus's brows furrowed as he slowly answered the question, which was to state that he assumed she'd gotten tired of having her husband attacked that way. Scorpius's parents were, as far as he'd observed, happily married, so he assumed that Scorpius's mother wouldn't take kindly to anyone harming her man.

"No. I made it clear that I would accept my share of the blame for the harm I caused before she and I were married. That people had the right to lash out at me and she wasn't to interfere or make excuses for me. She doesn't like it, obviously, but she's done as I've asked to the best of my knowledge. No…the reason she went after Mrs. Brown like a wraith was because Scorpius opened one of her letters to me accidentally. He was seven."

Paling as he understood, Albus stared down at his bandaged hand and then recalled the scars Scorpius bore on his own hands. He'd assumed, because his lover worked both with dangerous plants and potions, that the reminder of long healed wounds were from when the other man was starting out, still learning his trade.

"That fucking bitch."

In that moment it didn't matter that the woman had lost her daughter, or that she hadn't meant to harm a child and that this had happened ages ago. All Albus could think of was the little boy Scorpius had once been. And what that incident, an incident that was probably one of many given how many enemies the Malfoy family had, would have done to Scorpius and the boy's way of looking at the world and the people in it.

"His basic personality isn't the only reason he doesn't let people close to him, Potter. No matter what he might tell himself and you. You need to understand that to understand him."

Looking pointedly at Albus's bandaged hand, at the wounds Albus had received for being associated with Scorpius, the older man didn't have to say any more about it.

He'd given Albus more than enough to think about for the rest of their walk to the dungeons.

)

Mood dark and eyes stormy, Scorpius retrieved the last couple of jars from his shelves before spinning around to stride back to his worktable, setting them down to join the other potion ingredients he'd already collected from his stores. And once he had everything laid out the way he wanted it, mentally reviewing the ingredients necessary for the potion in his head as he did so, Scorpius single-mindedly ignored the fact that what little he had in his stomach was still threatened to revolt as he rolled up his sleeves in preparation for the work ahead.

He hadn't had a chance to eat much of his dinner before he'd overheard Professor Longbottom being quizzed about any white powder he might know about that caused burns to the skin that ordinary medicines and potions couldn't heal, and which smelled vaguely acidic. A description he'd recognized right away. And he'd known even before he'd interrupted the pair what the answer would be when he'd demanded to know who'd been exposed to the powder.

Albus.

Knowing exactly how painful the burns were, and that they would only get worse with time, Scorpius had been forced to abandon his meal then and there to come back here to create the ointment needed to treat the injury in question.

Stupid damn Potter.

Hadn't he told him this was exactly what would happen, Scorpius mentally fumed to himself as he went to work measuring out and then mixing the first three ingredients, the first part of the concoction done in no time so that he could move onto the next step without a break in his mental rantings.

Damn Gryffindors. They never listened! He'd told him that no one would accept them as a couple. That people would lash out and make their lives miserable as soon as they caught wind of even the possibility of a sexual, much less romantic interest between them. He'd told Potter that he'd end up hurt and was stupid for thinking that they could ever be more than the other's dirty secret.

No one could say that he hadn't warned him. He'd told him. This wouldn't have happened if Potter had just listened to him.

Forced to throw out the roots he'd just mangled with his knife beyond use, fuck, Scorpius stomped over to his cupboard and had just retrieved six new ones when he heard the sound of the storage room door being opened without the intruder even bothering to knock first.

Eyes narrowing with fury over the trespass, Scorpius had tossed the roots onto the table and was reaching for the wand he'd left in his pocket when his father stepped into the doorway, halting his motion.

"Father."

"Scorpius."

And then the shocks continued to come as Scorpius watched his father move off to the side to motion someone to come in, the sight of a very nervous and sheepish looking Albus Potter robbing Scorpius completely of his ability to speak.

"It seems you're already at work creating the burn ointment. Good. Potter, take a seat and keep quiet for the time being."

That Albus very obediently did as Scorpius's father ordered, without so much as a disagreeable look over being ordered around by a Malfoy, was another jolt to Scorpius's system, one that restarted his brain enough for him to ask what the hell was going on here.

"When I saw his hand it was obvious what had happened. I brought him here to get it treated. I'll get the roots if you like, or start on the aloe plant."

The reminder of Albus's injury had Scorpius's gaze switching over to stare at the bandaged hand currently resting on the Gryffindor's thigh, the Slytherin forgetting all about the fact that his father was in the room and would see and read too much into his actions as he marched across the room and demanded to see the burns.

Sitting on the high stool, Albus looked down at him warily from his perch. "Shouldn't you be having dinner right about now?"

"I should be, but an idiot Gryffindor had to go and get his stupid arse burned, didn't he? Which meant that I had to interrupt my dinner to come down here to make something for it."

"I burned my hand, not my arse."

"Show me the hand, Potter, or I'll give you more pain to occupy you."

"Sweet talker." A very Gryffindor smirk, one that had Scorpius's blood pressure rising, but Albus was also undoing the bandages as he'd asked, so Scorpius bit his tongue and then took Albus's damaged hand in his to pull it closer and nearer the light so that he could get a good look at it.

Oh thank Merlin.

Breathing a sigh of relief when he saw that the damage was minor, only a small amount of powder had transferred onto the other man's skin before Albus must have broken off contact with the parchment, Scorpius automatically stroked his thumb over an area of Albus's skin that wasn't red and swollen before looking up to meet the Gryffindor's gaze, intending to tell him that he'd told him this would happen since he was most certainly not going to lose the chance to do so when Potter so obviously couldn't deny that he'd been right.

"You're going to tell me you told me so, aren't you?"

Annoyed that he'd sorta been beaten to it, Scorpius's wasn't even aware that he continued to stroke the other man's hand as he answered. "Yes. Yes I am. I told you this would happen, Potter."

"And I told you that I didn't and don't give a damn what anyone else thinks about us dating, and I stand by it. So I bloody well told you so too."

"Have you lost what little mind you were born with?"

"You aren't the first to suggest that this week, true. But again, I know what I want, and I'm not about to let something like a few burns and hate mail scare me off. Maybe something like this would be enough to scare a SLYTHERIN off, but we GRYFFINDORS are made of STERNER stuff."

Staring at the Gryffindor in question, Scorpius didn't know whether to add his voice to all the others that had been telling the idiot he needed mental help, or whether just shaking the prat by his shoulders until his brains realigned themselves would be more expedient. Not to mention more enjoyable for him.

"For fuck sakes, just how often did that idiot uncle of yours experiment on you as a child?"

"Loads." Was Albus very matter-of-fact reply, the idiot openly smirking at him. "And Rox, Fred, and Lily too. I've lost track of how many times Lily's blown me up at this point too. Hell, I probably knew a fair percentage of the staff at St. Mungo's before I graduated from here with you. Hazards of being half Weasley, you know. Probably why I fancy you too, all that brain damage. But oh well, at least you're nice to look at even if your bedside manner is atrocious."

Sputtering, Scorpius deliberate put a seductive edge to his next words. "Funny, I don't recall you complaining about my bedside manner before, when I was fucking your brains out."

A snort was not the response Scorpius was expecting, the pain in the arse's next statement making all the color drain from his face.

"You know your dad can hear you, right?"

"FUCK!"

Going as red as it was humanly possible for him to turn, Scorpius whirled around to see that his father was very pointedly not looking at him as he stirred something in the large mixing bowl, having apparently decided to take over to job while he fought with the idiot Gryffindor in their midst.

Fuck. What were you supposed to say in situations like this? Sorry I just informed you that I've been sleeping with the son of Harry Potter, the man you spent your years at Hogwarts fighting with? Because somehow Scorpius didn't think that an apology, however sincere, would be adequate given the mental images he'd just given his father alone.

"Sir…I…"

"Keep working things out with him. I've got this."

Jaw dropping a little, it took Scorpius's a good minute to recover enough to respond. "We…why on earth would you want me to work things out with him? Not that there's anything to work out of course, no matter what the delusional idiot might have told you."

Both Slytherin's ignored Albus's sputtered protest at that.

"I don't want you to spend your life alone."

Well hell, Scorpius thought as he opened and then closed his mouth. What was he supposed to say to that?

"I kept the damn cat, you know."


	20. Not A Fairy Tale

Not A Fairy Tale

On some level maybe Albus knew that he should probably take offense to the suggestion that Snow was better company than he was, but on every other level he was bloody well amused, especially since he knew how much Scorpius hadn't wanted to accept that he was not only stuck with Snow, but was actually rather fond of the fluffy white furball. Despite all his protests to the contrary. And since Snow had indeed won over Scorpius in the end, well Albus decided to take that as a good sign that perhaps he could follow in the kneazle's footsteps and win Scorpius over eventually, too.

So instead of getting upset Albus laughed instead, before pointing out that if Scorpius had managed to find a place for one cat in his life, surely there was room for another. He was a Gryffindor after all.

"You're a bit bigger, not to mention a hell of a lot more annoying than he is."

"All the better to keep you warm and entertained, My Dear."

Seeing Scorpius's blank look, Albus realized quickly why. "Oh, right, Pureblood. That line's from a Muggle children's story called 'Little Red Riding Hood'. It's about this little girl who encounters a wolf pretending to be her grandmother. Every time the girl comments on something, like what big ears or eyes the wolf has, he replies that it's all the better to hear or see her with. Then it's about his teeth and he's all like 'All the better to eat you with, My Dear."

Scorpius stared at him in confusion. "Are you telling me Muggles are that stupid? That they wouldn't take one look at a wolf and know what it was?"

"And I thought animals didn't talk in the Muggle World. Or was it just that they don't know werewolves are real, and they just thought the werewolf was a wolf?" Draco wanted to know, just as confused as his son, apparently. "Because even then…"

"No, no, it's a fairy tale. Like the Muggle equivalent of 'Babbity Rabbity and the Cackling Stump'. It's not a real story. And Muggles are very into werewolves apparently, so they'd know one if they saw it." Or at least Uncle Dudley's daughter Brittany had seemed very into the idea that there were werewolves right up until he'd explained that they would probably kill her on sight, if she ever met one transformed.

Which they would even if they had their senses, Albus thought, since Brittany was as much a pill as her grandfather could be. Nasty girl.

"What lesson is the story supposed to teach children then? To not trust talking animals dressed as grandmothers?"

Albus just grinned at Scorpius's dry tone. "Actually, I think it was more aimed at the 'don't talk to strangers' lesson."

Scorpius rolled his eyes. "Right, that makes total sense. For a Muggle."

For a moment Albus considered explaining the whole story to both Malfoys, but it would probably only reinforce certain negative Muggle stereotypes, since even as children he and his cousins and siblings had all been confused by how Red Riding Hood hadn't taken one look at the wolf and started running for her life. So yeah, probably better to leave that alone and concentrate on his goals where Scorpius was concerned.

So he poked Scorpius with his good hand, and asked if he'd liked the presents he'd had delivered to him.

"Do you have a death wish, Potter?" Scorpius's tone was congenial enough, though his eyes narrowed threateningly.

"If I did I certainly wouldn't ask you to deliver the fatal blow. Merlin only knows what method you'd choose." A mischievous Gryffindor grin. "Why, do you fancy the idea of me haunting you for the rest of your life?"

Scorpius paled as much as someone of his complexion could at the idea. "Hell no."

"See? You want me to stick around, alive and well. You'd miss me if I was dead."

"No I wouldn't. I'd throw a party."

"You would so miss me. And how could you throw a party when you don't have any friends to celebrate with? It's not like Snow would be happy if I was dead."

"Oh I'm pretty sure I could find enough people in the Wizarding World who would want to celebrate your untimely demise, Potter to throw a party. Hell, I might even be rewarded for offing you for the sake of humanity."

Not backing down in the slightest, Albus kept the banter up about how much Scorpius would miss him, the Slytherin firing back shots and comments about how much happier he'd be without Albus in the world, though the words lacked heat or conviction, so that was okay.

"Has anyone ever told the two of you that you fight like an old and married Gryffindor couple?"

Now Scorpius was looking at his father in horror, while Albus wanted to know why the older Malfoy had specified that they fought like a Gryffindor couple. All couples fought one way or another after all. And if they didn't, well that was just wrong on a number of levels.

"Given that that kind of fighting is all you know, it's no surprise you don't see the difference."

"We do not fight like a married couple!" Scorpius blurted out then, having apparently gotten somewhat over the shock of his father's words.

"We sorta do. You can't say I don't get under your skin, Malfoy."

"That's not a good thing!"

"Actually, it is. It means I matter."

"No. What it means is you're like a bloody porcupine quill. A constant source of pain and irritation. And as soon as I figure out how to rip you out without taking a chunk of my flesh out with it, I will!"

Stomach rolling a little at the visual, the man did know how to paint a vivid image in his mind, Albus fell silent as he thought it over, which Scorpius apparently took to mean he'd won the argument given the smug, very Malfoy grin he was sporting. Which annoyed Albus, of course, but the whole nausea over the idea of quills being ripped out of flesh had his attention for the moment.

Thankfully it was only a few minute later when Mr. Malfoy announced that the stuff he'd been making to treat Albus's burned hand was ready, and did Scorpius want to do the honors.

Looking at the offered pot like it contained leeches, Scorpius's 'No' was as loud and childish sounding as a boy refusing to go to bed early.

It was the adorableness of that that had Albus's inner imp raring back into annoying Scorpius mode, especially since he was far from ready to admit defeat now that he knew he had Scorpius's father's approval. And speaking of the man….

"Well I guess that means you'll have to do it as my future father in law then, Mr. Malfoy."

Now that had both Slytherins going slack jawed, Albus was pleased to note.

"Your future what?" Scorpius demanded to know, his tone making it clear that he was going to jinx Albus into the next century if he didn't like the next words to come out of Albus's mouth.

"Father in law." Albus made his eyes go all big and innocent, which wasn't easy when he wanted to grin evilly. "I mean I was all set to just convince you to go out with me, but since you're making me work this hard to catch you, well obviously I have to win and marry you now. It will be a lifetime undertaking, I know, but I'm afraid I'm just too Gryffindor and Weasley to back out just because you don't deserve me. I'm going to have to keep you. Thems the Gryffindor rules, you see."

"Have you gone completely mad?"

"No."

"He's gone completely mad." Scorpius informed his father, seeking his agreement, no doubt.

"He's a Potter."

A look of horror crossed Scorpius face at the reminder of just how tenacious and troublesome Potters could be. And that they did have an annoying habit of doing things no rational person would do just to prove a point or get their own way.

Giving his son's shoulder a pat of sympathy with one hand, Draco Malfoy neatly shouldered his son away from Albus so that he could reach Albus hand, ordering him to hold out the bad one. And Albus did as ordered automatically, quite sure now that Scorpius's father was on his side, and wanting the burn taken care of post haste.

Once that was taken care of he could go back to his 'Get Scorpius' plotting after all. Especially since now he was obligated to put a ring on it.

Gryffindor pride was like that.

Or at least he was content letting Scorpius think that until he decided just what he wanted to do with his stubborn little Slytherin.

Hell, it had apparently only taken Hugo five orgasms to convince Alexei Dolohov to start dating him according to his cousin. And if said cousin could manage that, than surely he could manage to manipulate Scorpius into an ingenious trap of his own. Hopefully.

)

Unable to stand being around them one minute more, it was brutally obvious to Scorpius that his father had somehow been affected by Potter's madness and was beyond help at this point, Scorpius left his father to play healer and marched out of the room, deliberately slamming the door behind him to make his feelings clear to the both of them. Though of course he felt like a childish idiot as soon as he'd done it, which just made him furious that much more, and led to him calling Albus every filthy, nasty name he could think of all the way back to his rooms, which he locked and bespelled against the blasted Gryffindor. Just in case.

And of course Snow just had to come bouncing into the front hallway like the insane little fluff ball he was, purring all happily as he rubbed up against Scorpius's legs affectionately, obviously thrilled to see him because yes, the cat was just that idiotic.

Merlin save him.

Still, it was nice to have someone on his side at the moment, and so Scorpius bent down to scoop the hyper menace into his hands before cradling Snow against his chest as he headed for the bedroom, bad temperedly explaining, as he had done every night this week, just what Albus had done to irk him now.

Snow was a very good listener, if nothing else.

"And he's turned my own father on me, Snow. My own bloody father, for Merlin's sake!"

Purring, Snow slithered under Scorpius's chin to rub his fur against the sensitive skin there to comfort.

"And if you can't trust your own father, who can you trust? Well other than your mother, of course. Mothers are general more emotionally reliable and on our side than fathers. Not that you would know that, since I wouldn't imagine you spent much time with your mother. Probably none with your father. And alright, parents don't always do what's best for you, I mean my paternal grandfather actually pushed for my father to marry Pansy Parkinson, of all people, and I've met that woman, Snow. No father should ever wish that woman on someone he claims to love."

Scorpius appreciated Snow's sound of agreement.

Happy to have such a willing audience, Scorpius passed the next few minutes telling his pet all about how glad he was that his father had had the good sense to stand firm for once and marry his mother instead of the other girls his grandparents had attempted to foist on his father. Which led Scorpius to reminiscing about the women his grandparents had tried to pawn off on him in his teens, both of them refusing to accept the fact that he had absolutely zero interest in women.

"Not to mention I'm pretty sure my grandfather thought that homosexual or not, I should marry a woman anyway since I'm the last Malfoy, and it's my 'duty' to provide a heir to carry on the family name. Bugger that, I say. It's his own bloody fault he didn't have more children. If he had, he'd have had more grandchildren to mold, and odds are at least one of them would have fallen in line with his demands. Not me though, of course. I set him straight just like I set Albus straight. Thinks he can just pressure me into going out with him, much less marrying him. Madness, that's what that is. He's completely barmy if he actually believes that."

Stewing over that for several minutes, and stroking Snow's fur to try and calm himself down a little, Scorpius became aware of another huge annoyance that he'd been unaware of until now thanks to his thoughts being focused on Potter's stupidity.

"I am so fucking hungry. Damn, Potter, making me leave the Great Hall before I'd had the chance to eat hardly anything. And you can just bet if I went to the house elves and asked them to throw together a plate they'd give me food I don't like. They love Potters, you know. Always giving them and their friends food at all hours of the day and night. And sure they've cleaned my room like they were supposed to this week, but they're smart enough to know better than to mess with me. But don't think they wouldn't jump at the chance to give me lukewarm leftovers."

But he was hungry enough for lukewarm leftovers, and so Scorpius set Snow down on the bed and then pushed himself up to a sitting position, sliding over the covers and onto his feet. Then strolling across the room Scorpius was just passing through the doorway when the sound of someone knocking on his front door reached his ears.

His father or Albus?

Scowl in place, he wasn't feeling very fond of his father at the moment either, Scorpius picked up his pace to find out just who he would be verbally lashing out at, while not being really sure who he wanted to chew out more.

Opening the door to find Potter standing in his doorway, a large tray in hand, Scorpius's plans to let the git have it were sidetracked thanks to the smells wafting up from the two covered dishes currently resting on said tray.

Plus Yue was standing beside Albus, the kneazle watching him with a look of warning in his eyes.

"Both those dishes better be mine."

"Actually, I was hoping that you'd agree to eat with me on the condition that I don't speak a single word to you. If I do you can kick me out and feed whatever's left on my plate to Snow, since you're probably too prissy to share food with someone."

"Do you want me to kill you?"

Another big, innocent smile. "Nope. So do we have a deal or not? I can eat all this food by myself, you know. I am half Weasley. And there's the roasted chicken you really like on here. Possibly all that's left of it, actually, given how popular it is. This is food the set aside for me ahead of time, you see. You'd probably be out of luck if you went to the elves and asked them for some now."

The way Potter was grinning at him had Scorpius seriously considering slamming the door in the bastard's face. The satisfaction would be worth the empty stomach. Probably. But there was also that little voice inside his head that was reminding him that this was Albus he was dealing with. There was no way on earth the Gryffindor would be able to just sit across from him and eat, especially given all the snarky remarks Potter had no doubt been saving up this past week. And there was nothing that said he couldn't goad Albus into talking either, which would mean more food for him since he was not above eating the idiot's food too at this point.

Either way he did not think well on an empty stomach.

"One word from you and you leave, correct?"

"You have my word."

Briefly Scorpius considered making a comment about the worth of Albus's word, but he was too hungry to bother at the moment. So instead he moved to the side and motioned for them to walk past him, stating that the rule of Albus being quiet was now in effect.

No argument came, naturally, and following Albus into his parlor Scorpius took a seat and enjoyed being waited on as Albus set his plate in front of him, handing him the silverware he'd brought before conjuring them up some glasses of water to go with the meal.

Good manners and breeding had Scorpius tipping his head in a small acknowledgement of thanks, and then he turned his attention to eating as quickly as manners would allow, figuring that once he had enough to take the edge off he could turn his attention to hurling insults and slights in the Gryffindor's direction.

)

"So are they back to being friends now, Yue?" Snow wanted to know as he stared up at the two humans in question. They sure were hungry, he noted, though he'd known that already since his person had told him all about how hungry he was before Yue's person had come and brought him food so that he wouldn't have to be hungry anymore. Which was really nice of Albus to do in Snow's opinion, especially given all the rather mean things Snow's person had been saying recently about him.

"Humans do say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

"What's that mean?"

"It means that your person isn't nearly as smart as he thinks he is."

Snow frowned. "My person is too smart. He's a professor!"

Not that Snow was a hundred percent sure what a professor was, but apparently that was a very important position to have in this place. The professors got to sit at a special table all the time and told the other, littler people what to do. Snow had seen them.

"I'm not saying he's stupid, Snow. I'm just saying that he's underestimating how stubborn Albus can be when he really wants something. And that's going to come back and bite him in the arse very soon. Hard."


	21. Epilogue

Epilogue

A Little Over A Year Later

Head pounding, body aching, and a bad taste in his mouth just to add insult to injury, Scorpius opened his eyes to mere slits to get some sense of his surroundings before closing his eyelids once more when the light streaming through the nearest window damn near blinded him. Why were the bloody curtains not drawn?! And just how late in the day was it, exactly? Scorpius was fairly sure it was Saturday and Christmas holidays to boot, which meant no classes to teach, but still, he wasn't Albus, who could knowingly spend a day in bed just lazing around like a bloody bump on a log.

Speaking of which…

Turning a little, and keeping his gaze hooded to protect himself from the sun's harmful rays, Scorpius studied the man stretched out beside him, and debated the pros and cons of poking the other man in the shoulder until the idiot woke up. He wanted those drapes closed, ASAP. And he needed someone to tell him what time it was so that he didn't have to open his eyes or move to find out himself.

But after months spent sleeping beside the Gryffindor Scorpius knew that getting the spiky haired menace up would take more effort than he wanted to spend at the moment. Especially when he was hungover, which was all Potter's fault in the first place, thought of course Albus wouldn't accept the blame. No, his on again, off again lover was very good when it came to the shifting blame onto others. Usually him.

Why oh why had he ever let himself be talked into dating Potter again? Oh right. The stupid reverse psychology trick the bastard had used against him so effectively. Or at least that's what Rorake had called it, since he apparently used that against Louis often.

Groaning low in his throat, Scorpius still couldn't believe that he'd fallen for it all those months ago. Not that he hadn't been aware he was being manipulated, he had, obviously, to some degree, but the full extent of the Gryffindor's ploy hadn't hit Scorpius until after he'd taken the bait.

If only he hadn't been lured in by the food Albus had brought him that night, Scorpius mused with a sigh, imagining how things would have been different if he'd turned the other man away or had kicked him out once they'd eaten, rather than let himself be seduced by the 'goodnight' kiss Albus had sneakily planted on him once dinner was over. But no, one kiss had led to another, as it so often did between them, and then before you could say 'bad life choices', they'd ended up in his bed and orgasms were had and former lines in the sand blown away.

Afterwards, when he'd tried to kick the Gryffindor out by reminding him of his damaged hand and how things were only going to get worse for the other man if he didn't give up on his crazy idea that they should start dating…well that had led to Albus giving him his whole spiel about how he appreciated how much Scorpius cared about him. Which he had naturally denied, of course, which was when Albus had pointed out that rather than warn him off, Scorpius should be dating him willingly to make him suffer both his wrath and everyone else's. That was if Scorpius was serious about disliking him.

His response that he preferred to be the one making Albus suffer, rather than letting other people have all the fun, had been brushed aside with Albus pointing out that if that were true he would have hunted him down for all the courting he'd tried to do, rather than just talk about how he was going to maim him to everyone who would listen.

How he'd gotten talked into dating Albus just to prove that he didn't like him Scorpius still wasn't sure, the whole argument had been pretty ludicrous, but all he did know was that it had been over a year since they'd started 'dating', and they were still doing this weird little dating dance of theirs.

Not that he hadn't tried to dump the stubborn idiot a number of times since then. He had. The break ups just never seemed to last long for some reason. And it had been a while since the last time, though the headache he was dealing with at the moment made Scorpius think that maybe they were passed due there.

Sitting up slowly and carefully, his arm in front of him to block out the sun for the most part, Scorpius scanned the bedcovers, just in case, and was relieved to see that neither of their pets was sleeping on said bed with them. Yue always found some way to punish him if he accidentally jostled or kicked the kneazle in his sleep. Like losing at chess to the damn creature regularly wasn't bad enough.

Gingerly making his way out of bed and across the room, Scorpius let himself out and then headed for the loo to relieve his bladder and get a potion and some water into him. He had vague recollections of Albus getting him to drink water before he'd passed out the night before, which was probably why his head didn't hurt more considering the amount of liquor he'd ended up drinking. Stupid New Year's party. And stupid Albus for dragging him to it in the first place. Especially since Great Aunt Andromeda and Teddy had both left early, worn out from the insanity that was a house full of Weasleys and Potters. Well the very pregnant Victoire had been tired, and Teddy had left with her since he was the one who'd gotten his wife up the duff in the first place, but that wasn't important.

He and Alexei had both been in complete agreement that one of the rare silver lining about having been sucked into dating members of that family was that at least their partners were male and therefore they couldn't knock them up, if nothing else. Rorake hadn't agreed with them, but living with Louis had obviously driven him mad so his opinion didn't count. Especially since Louis Weasley would be even more high maintenance pregnant, which was too terrifying a thought to ponder.

Lifting his hands to scrub over his face as he struggled to wake up a little more, Scorpius went unnaturally still, both physically and mentally, as the feel of something cool and metal against his skin registered.

Very, very slowly, Scorpius lowered his hands to his sides as he stared unseeingly at his pale reflection in the mirror, and then just as carefully the Slytherin brought up his left hand to eye level, the silver band on his finger not disappearing no matter how long he stared at it.

And then the memories of just how that ring had gotten on his finger in the first place started to come together in a way that had a cold shiver racing down his spine as he opened his mouth to yell.

"ALBUS SEVERUS POTTER!"

)

Having spent the night catnapping, he wasn't an idiot, after all, Albus's eyes snapped open immediately to prove that he was awake and aware as Scorpius's furious calling of his name reached his ears, despite the fact that the Slytherin was in another room. Sitting up and throwing off the covers as fast as he could, Albus slid out of bed and grabbing his wand from his bedside table shoved it into his pajama bottom pocket. Just to be on the safe side, of course, as he braced for the coming storm.

And Scorpius didn't disappoint when the blond came storming into the room like a natural disaster waiting to happen, looking sexy as hell regardless of his tired and hungover state. Albus had come to appreciate the beauty of Scorpius's grey eyes when he was angry over the past year. Once the edge of fear had finally been worn away.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"

Doing his best to look as innocent and clueless as possible, Albus pretended to take a moment to comprehend what he was being asked before answering the question.

"Your engagement ring?"

The strangled sound Scorpius made wasn't terribly flattering, but it was better than being cursed at physically or magically, so Albus wasn't going to complain. At least not outloud. For now. Later might be a different story once they got over this first hurdle.

"WE ARE NOT ENGAGED!"

"Actually, we are. You said yes and everything. I have witnesses, Luv."

And there was the eye twitch that tended to accompany the L word in any of its forms. Classic Malfoy.

"We are not engaged! It doesn't count! I was drunk at the time!"

"I asked you if you were pissed, you said no." In truth Scorpius had been pleasantly buzzed at the time, but Albus HAD asked before the Slytherin was truly drunk. He might have to fight dirty when it came to getting the stupid man in front of him to let him further into his life, but even he wouldn't propose while Scorpius was drunk off his fine arse.

Watching Scorpius's face flush with furious color, Albus couldn't help himself. "And really, you know that its tradition for us at this point, to make life changing decisions while under the influence of alcohol."

"Dammit, Potter!"

"Oh calm down, Malfoy. Look at it this way, the way I proposed gives you an excuse for saying yes and being stuck with me because you gave your word. Or at least stop shouting at me, if nothing else. You know how that upsets the children."

The look Malfoy gave him suggested that Scorpius thought he'd taken leave of his senses even more than normal, so Albus turned his head and nodded in the direction of said 'children', Scorpius groaning when he saw that Yue and Snow were indeed in the room and watching. Of course Yue was obviously not thrilled to be called a child, while Snow was all big eyed and worried looking from his spot between Yue's front legs. His safe place, as Snow liked to put it.

"Shit."

"Quite."

A dark look in his direction, and then Scorpius walked over and squatting down retrieved Snow and cuddled the ball of fluff against his chest, the two having really bonded by now, since Scorpius had an always sympathetic and attentive listener in Snow. And Scorpius needed someone to bitch about him to, Albus acknowledged with a smirk, though it was softened with affection as he watched his fiancé give him his back while he soothed Snow with pets and murmured nonsense Albus couldn't hear. So cute.

Five minutes or so of that, and then finally Scorpius turned around to glare at him.

"I can't believe you proposed to me like I'm some girl."

"If you wanted to do the proposing you should have done it earlier."

Angry muttering. "We'll kill each other within a year."

Judging the situation, and pretty sure that the first and worst wave was over, Albus dared to approach, wrapping his arms around the Slytherin's waist as soon as he was close enough to do so. And Scorpius let him, though the blond was still scowling at him.

"I'm willing to risk it. And so are you, Mr. Grumpy."

More glaring, but Scorpius didn't protest when Albus retrieved Snow from Scorpius's hands, set the cat on the floor, and then pulled Scorpius in for a kiss.

)

Snow paused for a moment to make sure that the two were really kissing and making up before hurrying over to Yue, who wasn't even looking at their humans. But then Yue didn't get upset when their persons argued. Yue said it was just their way of showing their affection, and that Snow should get used to it. And Snow knew that Yue was right, his person did tend to yell a lot for no reason that Snow could see, but he still didn't like it. Especially since sometimes it meant that their persons wouldn't talk or play with each other for a while. His person was always very miserable when that happened, and Snow hated when his person was so unhappy.

"What's going on? Why was my person upset about the shiny thing on his finger?"

Yawning widely, Yue shook his head over the whole thing. "You really need to stop worrying so much. You don't want all your fur to fall out from stress, do you?"

Though the puffball had so much fur he probably wouldn't even notice if he lost half of it, Yue silently snickered to himself.

Eyes going huge, Snow's voice quivered as he asked if that could really happen.

"It's possible." Probably. "But either way you need to get used to your person shouting like an idiot for no good reason, since he and Albus are going to be living together soon. Permanently."

Just the thought of it had Yue wanting to hide under a bed somewhere, but he was too cool for that.

"We're all going to live together? Really?" Now Snow quivered in excitement, his little face beaming with happiness. "How come?"

"Our persons are getting married. That will make us all…family." That was the best explanation Yue could come up with that Snow would understand.

Naturally it took a couple minutes for that to sink in, Yue calmly groom his paw while he waited for the no doubt loud and entertaining reaction that was sure to follow.

And he wasn't wrong about that.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so happy! This is the bestest thing to ever happen, EVER! We gotta sing about it, Yue!"

It wasn't normal for Yue to sing, and when he did, was because he'd heard some song that he couldn't get out of his head, and was pretty sure he wouldn't be overheard. But as he looked into Snow's shining eyes, and he thought about how, despite all the reasons it was horrible, it would be nice for them all to be a family, Yue decided to give in, a little. Just this once.

Insofar as a song he'd heard once popped into his head, and changing part of the lyrics wasn't exactly trying on his brilliant brain.

"We are family, I got our persons and Snow with me.  
We are family, get up ev'rybody and sing."

And beaming that much wider, Snow sang it back to him.

"We are family, I got our persons and Yue with me.  
We are family, get up ev'rybody and sing."

Naturally their humans didn't sing, the two didn't speak kneazle, after all, but Albus and Scorpius stopped their debate about who was going to make brunch for the other, and instead smiled down at their pets while the two kneazles sang together.

Cause they were family.

The End


End file.
